iCARE Jamaica
Jamaica Facts
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Jamaica Motto
& Coat of Arms
The Jamaican national motto is ‘Out of Many One People’.
The Coat of Arms shows male and female Arawaks
standing on either side of a shield which bears
a red, equal armed cross with five golden pineapples.
The crest also shows a Jamaican crocodile mounted on the
Royal Helmet of the British Monarchy,
a distinction accorded to Jamaica.
03 February 1661
Jamaica
National Anthem
Eternal Father, Bless our Land
Guard us with Thy Mighty Hand
Keep us free from evil powers
Be our light through countless hours
To our leaders, great defender
Grant true wisdom from above
Justice, truth be ours forever
Jamaica, land we love
Jamaica, Jamaica, Jamaica land we love
Teach us true respect for all
Stir response to duty’s call
Strengthen us the weak to cherish
Give us vision lest we perish
Knowledge send us Heavenly Father
Grant true wisdom from above
Justice, truth be ours forever
Jamaica, land we love
Jamaica, Jamaica, Jamaica land we love
National Flag
The Jamaica National Flag came into use in 1962 August 06, Jamaica’s Independence Day.
The flag was designed by a bipartisan committee of the Jamaica House of representatives.
The Flag has a diagonal cross or satire with four triangles and the diagonal cross is in gold and one-sixth of the length of the fly of the flag; the top and bottom triangles are in green; and the hoist and fly triangles are in black.
New Symbolism Flag
New Symbolism as of 1996 – “Hardships there are but the land is green and the sun shineth is the symbolism of the Flag.
Black symbolizes the strength and creativity of the Jamaican people ; Gold, for natural wealth and beauty of sunlight;
and Green stands for hope and agricultural resources”.
Old Symbolism
Original Symbolism
Black stands for hardships overcome and to be faced ;
Gold, for natural wealth and beauty of sunlight;
and Green stands for hope and agricultural resources”
National Bird
Doctor Bird
The “Doctor Bird” (Trochilus polytmus) lives only in Jamaica and is one of the most outstanding of all the species of Humming Birds. The feathers of the Doctor Bird are beautifully iridescent, a characteristic peculiar to this family.
National Flower
Lignum Vitae
(Guiacum officinale) is indigenous to Jamaica. It is thought that the name “Wood of Life” was then adopted because of its medicinal qualities.
Lignum vitae resin has been used to treat a variety of medical conditions from coughs to arthritis, and chips of the wood can also be used to brew a tea.
National Costume
Miss Lou is Jamaica’s folk ambassador in National Costume.
A full flared red cotton skirt known as a bandana skirt, worn usually with a ruffled sleeved blouse and matching head scarf.
Miss Lou in The National Costume on the cover of her book Jamaica Labrish.
National Fruit
Ackee
Ackee the Jamaican National Fruit. Ackee (Blighia sapida) originally imported from West Africa, and now grows luxuriantly producing each year large quantities of edible fruit.
Jamaica is the only place where the fruit is generally recognized as an edible crop.