Com about - Jamaica Jamaica Jamaica , a Caribbean island country lying south of Cuba. Streams flow both north and south, the northern rivers reaching a coast which is very beautiful, with palm-fringed beaches and long, sandy bays. Both agriculture and industry are important, with sugar, bananas, and coffee the principal agricultural exports, and there is also a developing manufacturing industry.
Tourism is an important source of foreign exchange.
A high level of debt, sporadic outbreaks of criminal violence, and hurricane damage in 1988 have damaged the economy. Originally inhabited by Arawak Indians, Jamaica was discovered by Columbus in 1494 and settled by the Spanish in 1509. In 1655 it was captured by the British and prospered as a buccaneer base. The importation of slaves to work on sugar-cane plantations made Jamaica the leading sugar producer of the 18th century. A Negro rebellion in 1865 was ruthlessly suppressed by Governor Eyre.