The Island of Jamaica Essay -- Jamaica Countries Geography

The Island of Jamaica The island of Jamaica is the third largest Caribbean island. It is in a group of islands called the greater antilles. It has an area of 10 991 km squared or 4 244 sq. miles. Jamaica spans 230 km east to west and from 80-36 from north to south. It is third only to Cuba, which is the largest, and Hispaniola which is the second largest island. Jamaica lies in the Caribbean sea which is a part of the much larger Atlantic ocean. The island is 960 km south of Florida, 160 km southwest of Haiti, and 140 km south of Cuba. Jamaica is mainly a mountainous island but there are 320 km of fine sandy beaches, swamps, moist fern- forests, sprawling open plains, plateaus, rushing rivers, and magnificent waterfalls. The Blue Mountains are the highest mountains in Jamaica and Blue Mountain Peak which is the highest peak in Jamaica rises to 2256 m or 7 402 feet. They are made up primarily of limestone. Farther to the west in the cockpit country the limestone has eroded over many years to form large depressions, narrow valleys, underground caverns and rivers. Most of the surface rivers are short, swift flowing and descend quickly to the coast and consist of a series of rapids and waterfalls. The island is ringed by plains separated by mountain and sea. The country is divided into three counties. They are Cornwall to the west, Middlesex is central, and Surrey is to the east. Middlesex is the largest county. Jamaica is also divided into 14 parishes which are basically like provinces or states. The parishes are Kingston, St. Andrew, St. Thomas, Portland, St. Mary, St. Ann, Trelawny, St. James, Hanover, Westmoreland, St. Elizabeth, Manchester, Clarendon, and St. Catherine. .. ... Kingston, Jamaica: Kingston Publishers, 1976 Macpherson, John. Carribean Lands. Spain: Longman Group Ltd, 1974 Sherlock, Philip. The Land and People of the West Indies. U.S.A: J.B. Lippincott Company, 1967 Wilkins, Francis. Jamaica. Hong Kong: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987 Zach, Paul., and Hoefer, Hans Insight Guides: Jamaica. Singapore: APA Productions, 1987 Jamaica Information Service. Jamaica: An Overview. Kingston: Jamaica Information Service, 1990 Potter, Mitch. "New Album Kicks off Marley Blitz." The Toronto Star. 6 February, 1991, Sec. E, p. 4 "Jamaica." Merit Students Encyclopedia. 16th ed., 1980 "Jamaica." The World Book Encyclopedia 14th ed., 1989