Did you know 1
- ...that Calico Jack, an English pirate captain during the early 18th century, was executed with most of his crew in Jamaica on 17 November 1720?
Did you know 2
- ...that the Queen's Personal Jamaican Flag, sometimes known as the Royal Standard of Jamaica (pictured) was the personal flag of the late Queen Elizabeth II in her role as Queen of Jamaica?
Did you know 3
- ...that on the flag of Jamaica, black symbolises the strength and creativity of the Jamaican people, gold represents sunlight and the country's natural wealth and green represents hope for the future and agricultural richness?
Did you know 4
- ...that the Empire Windrush (pictured) was a ship that transported a group of 492 immigrants from Jamaica to Tilbury near London on 22 June 1948 to start a new life in Britain? And that these arrivals were the first of many subsequent migrants from the Caribbean to the United Kingdom via immigration campaigns created by successive British governments?
Did you know 5
- ...that Alexander Bustamante (pictured), the prominent Jamaican politician, was born William Alexander Clarke but took the name Bustamante to honour an Iberian sea captain who befriended him in his youth?
Did you know 6
- ...that eating an unripe Ackee fruit (pictured), which were introduced to Jamaica from West Africa by Dr. Thomas Clark in 1778, can trigger an acute vomiting and hypoglycemic disease known as Jamaican vomiting sickness?
Did you know 7
- ...that record producer Lee "Scratch" Perry's first single "People Funny Boy" was directed as an insult to fellow Jamaican music mogul and former collaborator Joe Gibbs?
Did you know 8
- ...that the economy of Jamaica was given a boost after the discovery in the 1940s of bauxite, an aluminium ore?
Did you know 9
Did you know 10
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/10
- ...that Spanish Town is the former Spanish and English capital of Jamaica. It held the status of capital city from the 16th to the 19th century, and is now a World Heritage Site?
Did you know 11
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/11
- ...that Michael Manley defeated his own cousin, Hugh Shearer, in a national election to become Prime Minister of Jamaica in 1972?
Did you know 12
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/12
- ...that Jamaican artist Carl Abrahams served in the Royal Air Force in England before becoming a painter of religious subjects.
Did you know 13
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/13
- ...that Madge Sinclair, born in Kingston, received an Emmy Award nomination for her role as Belle in the miniseries Roots, and voiced Sarabi, Simba’s mother, in the blockbuster Disney animated film The Lion King.
Did you know 14
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/14
- ...that the White Witch (of Rose Hall), Annie Palmer, is a character in Jamaican folklore?
Did you know 15
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/15
- ...that Trenchtown, a neighbourhood in Kingston, Jamaica, gets its name from a large open-trenched sewer that ran through the neighbourhood?
Did you know 16
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/16
- ...that Bunny Wailer, an original member of Jamaican reggae group The Wailers, was born Neville O'Riley Livingston?
Did you know 17
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/17
- ...that Errol Brown, frontman of the successful British band, Hot Chocolate, was born in Kingston, Jamaica and now lives in The Bahamas? And that in 2003, Brown was appointed as a MBE as well as being rewarded with an Ivor Novello Award for outstanding contributions to British music?
Did you know 18
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/18
- ....that Jamaican Creole contains many words borrowed from English as well as from Spanish, Portuguese, Hindi, and African languages?
Did you know 19
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/19
- ...that Jamaican ska music pioneer Prince Buster had been a skillful amateur boxer as a teenager, and was first hired by record producer Coxsone Dodd not as a musician but as security?
Did you know 20
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/20
- ...that record producer Lee "Scratch" Perry's first single "People Funny Boy" was directed as an insult to fellow Jamaican music mogul and former collaborator Joe Gibbs?
Did you know 21
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/21
- ...that the economy of Jamaica was given a boost after the discovery in the 1940s of bauxite, an aluminium ore?
Did you know 22
Did you know 23
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/23
- ...that Spanish Town is the former Spanish and English capital of Jamaica. It held the status of capital city from the 16th to the 19th century, and is now a World Heritage Site?
Did you know 24
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/24
- ...that Michael Manley defeated his own cousin, Hugh Shearer, in a national election to become Prime Minister of Jamaica in 1972?
Did you know 25
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/25
- ...that Jamaican artist Carl Abrahams served in the Royal Air Force in England before becoming a painter of religious subjects.
Did you know 26
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/26
- ...that Madge Sinclair, born in Kingston, received an Emmy Award nomination for her role as Belle in the miniseries Roots, and voiced Sarabi, Simba’s mother, in the blockbuster Disney animated film The Lion King.
Did you know 27
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/27
- ...that the White Witch (of Rose Hall), Annie Palmer, is a character in Jamaican folklore?
Did you know 28
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/28
- ...that Trenchtown, a neighbourhood in Kingston, Jamaica, gets its name from a large open-trenched sewer that ran through the neighbourhood?
Did you know 29
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/29
- ...that Bunny Wailer, an original member of Jamaican reggae group The Wailers, was born Neville O'Riley Livingston?
Did you know 30
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/30
- ...that Errol Brown, frontman of the successful British band, Hot Chocolate, was born in Kingston, Jamaica and now lives in The Bahamas? And that in 2003, Brown was appointed as a MBE as well as being rewarded with an Ivor Novello Award for outstanding contributions to British music?
Did you know 31
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/31
- ....that Jamaican Creole contains many words borrowed from English as well as from Spanish, Portuguese, Hindi, and African languages?
Did you know 32
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/32
- ...that Jamaican ska music pioneer Prince Buster had been a skillful amateur boxer as a teenager, and was first hired by record producer Coxsone Dodd not as a musician but as security?
Did you know 33
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/33
- that the song Israelites was written by Jamaican musician Desmond Dekker after he heard a couple arguing about money?
Did you know 34
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/34
- ... that English librarian Frank Cundall created the West India Reference Library in 1894, which later became the nucleus of the National Library of Jamaica?
Did you know 35
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/35
- ... that Edward McGeachy took a butler with him when he surveyed Fort Stewart Estate in colonial Jamaica?
Did you know 36
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/36
- ... that an aqueduct of over 1 mi (1.6 km) in length was built to supply Trinity plantation in Jamaica with water?
Did you know 37
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/37
- ... that Albion plantation in Jamaica had at least 450 slaves in 1833, producing 400 hogsheads of sugar and 240 puncheons of rum annually?
Did you know 38
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/38
- ... that Francis Rose's plantations in Jamaica included Old Works, New Works, and The Decoy?
Did you know 39
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/39
- ... that Walter Feurtado compiled 58 volumes of notes while researching his guide to the Official and Other Personages of Jamaica, from 1655 to 1790?
Did you know 40
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/40
- ... that Nerine Barrett, one of the few black women to have achieved international recognition as a classical pianist, first performed on Radio Jamaica for her third birthday?
Did you know 41
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/41
- ... that in 1725 Hans Sloane described a plant he called Prickly-Pole as the Jamaican tree species that was "the most fit to make Rods and Scowrers for Guns"?
Did you know 42
Portal:Jamaica/Did you know/42
- ... that prior to becoming president of Loyola College in Maryland, Joseph A. Canning spent eight years as a missionary in Jamaica?
Did you know 43
Did you know 44
Did you know 45
Did you know 46
Did you know 47
Did you know 48
Did you know 49
Did you know 50
Additions
General guidelines for nominations, loosely based on Wikipedia:Did you know include:
- Pick DYKs in articles that are interesting.
- Look for articles that are over 1,000 characters in size - no stubs.
- The "Did you know?" fact must be mentioned in the article.
- Try to select articles that cite their sources, particularly the item mentioned.