Jamaica Population History

The population of Jamaica is almost entirely derived from four immigrant streams entering the island since its capture by the British in 1655. By far the largest number came from Africa. About a million people were landed throughout the slave period, and though some of these were sent elsewhere, at the time of emancipation they outnumbered the white settlers by about ten to one. Today about 96 % of the population is colored or black.

Jamaica population took only a small share of the indentured Indian laborers who came to the Caribbean in the last half of the nineteenth century. Their descendants now make up about 2 % of the total. In more recent years there has been a small but steady immigration of Chinese. These people, and all other groups, including Europeans, make up only 2% of the total.
Since the days of slavery population has risen steadily, and in recent years rapidly, in spite of considerable emigration. The first outlet for emigrants was Panama, where they worked on the canal which was begun and abandoned by the French in the 1880s and completed by the Americans between 1908 and 1914.

Many Jamaicans chose to remain in Panama and a considerable number of Jamaican families are still there. Throughout this period other emigrants left for Cuba during the expansion of the sugar industry there, and for Central America especially Costa Rica to work on the banana estates. Between the two world wars many Jamaica population density was reduced as many people travelled to America.

Several thousand still go there each year. In the 1950's the chief goal of emigrants was Britain, where many men and women found employment in factories and on public transport in London, Liverpool, Birmingham and other big cities. In addition, West Indian women were attracted to nursing to such an extent that many British hospitals would have to close if they left. More recently, owing to British immigration restrictions, the number of Jamaicans going there has declined.

The population is unevenly distributed over the island. This is evidenced by many a population map Jamaica. Though in fact the real contrasts are not between one parish and another but between those areas which have the resources to support dense settlement and those which do not. We have already noted the contrast between the sparsely settled limestone uplands and the densely peopled basins within them. In the Blue Mountains there is a similar contrast between the summits and the valleys, even though many precipitous slopes have been cleared for cultivation and settlement. The coastal lowlands are densely peopled, apart from a few swampy areas.

The growth of population in different parts of the island has also been uneven. Because people have been moving out of farming districts into the towns, the increase of population has been small in some parishes and large in others. As Map 5n shows, by far the greatest growth has taken place in St. Andrew, most of which is now occupied by suburbs of the city of Kingston. Another growth area has been the parish of St James, with its focus at Montego Bay.

Population in downtown Kingston has not grown much; in fact numbers declined slightly between 1960 and 1970. Within the boundaries of the city there are great contrasts in density. There are business areas which are crowded with people by day and empty at night. And there are densely peopled housing areas occupied by workers with poorly paid jobs and by thousands with no jobs at all.