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Cultural norms of Jamaica Jamaica is a land of diverse cultures. It has a number of different racial ethnic groups . The largest group however is the blacks or Africans so ‘Jamaica’s culture’ is predominantly black. Interwoven is also the European culture which these blacks learnt from their former white slaves masters. You will find Indians living in Jamaica also. Many Indians came to Jamaica as indentured servants and stayed, they too have an input in the Jamaica’s culture. There is a thriving culture of Chinese on the island many came and are still coming as merchants.
Jews and the Syrians also are a part of this cultural mix. All these different races have made the country what it is, hence the motto written on the Coat of Arms ‘Out Of many One People. ‘ The different races gave to ‘Jamaica’s culture’ a richness in food, dance, music, language, most of all a life-style. The skin of many of the blacks is not very blue black as many other black races but is different hues light to dark chocolate brown because of the different mixture of blood. The people are also a pleasant set of people, many are beautiful in physical features. Jamaican Language
English is the official language. But all Jamaicans speak a “jamaicanized” form of English often called patois. Some uneducated Jamaicans speak only patois but understand standard English while some educated people speak patois in informal conversations. Jamaican culture has a language that is one of the most colourful of all the Caribbean. You really should hear a Jamaica curse. There is nothing that can be compared with it. It has a musical sound and a resonance to it, spoken in different decibels, one word can mean many different things. Listen to a Jamaican poet reading poetry.
The language carries a lot of feelings and can sound very aggressive to those who do not understand it. Jamaican Food The Jamaican diet consists mainly of fish, poultry, rice, vegetable and fruits. Jamaican food is a mixture of all the cultures. Jerk meat- African, Curry – Indian, Christmas pudding- European and . Chop Suey – Chinese. Traditionally the food is very hot and spicy and goes well with the alcoholic beverages that are made on the island from sugar cane. The national dish includes ackee and saltfish, rice and peas with chicken, pork or fish are also very popular. Religions in Jamaica
Jamaica is said to have the most churches per square mile than any other island. Religion plays an integral part in the Jamaica’s culture. Some religious groups found in Jamaica are as follows; Anglicans, Presbyterians, Roman Catholics, Quakers, Methodists, Baptists, Seventh-day Adventists, Moravians, Jehovah’s Witnesses. There are also members of the Hindu community also members of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, Rastafarianism is seen as a religion as observers consider it as such. Traditionally there are certain times of the year that most people will not miss going to church, New Year, Easter and Christmas.
Occasions such as funerals, crusades and gospel are well supported. Many Jamaican believe in spiritual healing so there is a culture of the supernatural entrenched in the Jamaican culture carried over from slavery. The Holidays in Jamaica are categorized as secular holidays and religious holidays. The religious holidays are: ???Ash Wednesday ???Good Friday ???Easter Monday ???Christmas Day Jamaican Clothing /Dress Dress is one of the marks of the people. They are known to be one of the best dressed people in the world. They like bright colours and very fashionable styles.
If you find one who differs, it may be because there is not the means to do so or because of religious practices. The ladies do not consider themselves dressed without a fabulous hair style which can run into thousands of dollars. The national costume is a creation of bandanna plaid of red and white and can be trimmed with white red or blue. Jamaica’s take pride in these costumes and create various fashion designs with them. Sports played in Jamaica The sports played in Jamaica, typical of the culture, is also very diverse.
They play most of the sports of the Commonwealth, the Americas, and of course those they acquired from their many peoples. Jamaicans play for fun, relaxation and keeping in shape. However sports do offer many of their youths a ticket to continued education, fame, and financial security, Jamaica is home to the world’s fastest man Usain Bolt. The list of games played in Jamaica is far too long however some of the most popular are cricket, domino, soccer/football, netball, surfing, bobsled, table tennis, basketball, golf, athletics, boxing, horse racing, volleyball, motor racing etc.
There are also games mostly played by children, games such as jacks, dandi-shandi (sightings) jump rope (skipping rope), and a wide range of games played with hands accompanied by song. The daily life of Jamaicans Family life is central to most Jamaicans, although formal marriages are less prevalent there than in most other countries. It is common for three generations to share a home. Many women earn wages, particularly in households where men are absent, and grandmothers normally take charge of preschool children. Wealthier Jamaican families usually employ at least one domestic helper.
The main meal is almost always in the evening, because most people do not have time to prepare a midday meal and children normally eat at school. Some families eat together, but television has increasingly replaced conversation at the dinner table. The exception to this rule is Sunday, when tradition dictates that even poor families enjoy a large and sociable brunch or lunch, usually including chicken, fish, yams, fried plantains, and the ubiquitous rice and peas (rice with black-eyed pea). Music plays a very important part in the life of Jamaicans, this as well as food and sports bring them together.
Jamaicans celebrate quite a few secular holidays such as: ???Labour Day ???Independence Day ???Emancipation Day ???Boxing Day ???Mother’s Day ???Father’s Day Cultural norms of the United States of America There are as many cultures in the United States as there are in the world, as the United States of America is the place of some form of acceptance for all cultures and ethnic people. In retrospect, the United States has just one culture, the culture of variety. To know how many individual cultures exist in the United States of America is to know how many exists in the world.
American Languages Although there is no official language at the federal level, some laws???such as U. S naturalization requirements, standardized English. In 2006, about 224 million, or 80 percent of the population aged five years and older, spoke only English at home. Spanish, spoken by 12 percent of the population at home, is the second most common language and the most widely taught second language. There are as many languages as there are nations and cultures in the United States of America which is just too much to number. Religions in America
Religion in the United States in comparison to other developed countries is very diverse. The First Amendment to the country’s Constitution prevents the government from having any authority in religion, and guarantees the free exercise of religion. The majority of Americans (76%) identify themselves as Christians, mostly within Protestant and Catholic denominations, accounting for 51% and 25% of the population respectively. Non-Christian religions (including Judaism, Buddhism, Islam, and Hinduism), collectively make up about 4% to 5% of the adult population.
Another 15% of the adult population identifies as having no religious belief or no religious affiliation. A few other religions/religious groups found in the United States are the Quakers, Unitarian Universalism, Baha’i, Sikhism and Jehovah’s witnesses. These are some of the religious holidays celebrated in America: ???Ash Wednesday ???St. Patrick’s Day ???Good Friday ???Easter ???Thanks Giving ???Hanukkah ???Christmas American Food American food is very varied, with many ethnic influences from all over the world. Nevertheless, American cuisine exists.
Analysis reveals that Americans get nearly one-third of their calories from junk foods: soft drinks, sweets, desserts, alcoholic beverages, and salty snacks. It explains why obesity is rampant, diabetes is epidemic, and chronic disease is skyrocketing: they are a nation of people who are simultaneously overfed and malnourished. In other words, they are getting plenty of calories but very little nutrition. People from different nations/cultures living in the United States may not have this problem as they most times eat food they are used to in their country, eg.
Asians eat Asian food, Jamaicans eat Jamaican food. Sports played by Americans Sports plays a part in the culture of the United States of America, as a nation they are very competitive, they strive to be the best in everything. Sports also bring them together, one of the most important seasons to sports lovers in America is the Super Bowl season, this is the season for American football (NFL). There are also other sports that the Americans play such as: baseball, basketball, soccer, motor racing, tennis, golf, track and field, martial arts, surfing, wrestling, boxing, cycling etc.
American Dress/Clothing Americans wear clothes according to season, in the winter season coats, boots, long johns, gloves and hoodies are commonly worn. Since the summer time is relatively warmer less clothes is worn especially in the tropical side of the country( down south), in the spring season white is commonly worn and for those are slaves to fashion, white is not worn after labour day. In the autumn or fall season warm clothes is worn as it is approaching the winter season. Fashion never stays the same in America, the style or fashion changes almost every year.
Having a high sense of fashion is called swag/swagger, for now the style that is now in is skinny jeans, graphic T-shirts, nerd glasses and high top sneakers/converse, let’s wait and see what next year brings. The daily life of Americans People are always on the move in most cities in America, they hardly have time to eat, they may only have enough time to grab a cup of coffee in the morning and microwave dinner in the evenings, this life is very fast paced. The use of cell phones and computers has taken over from face to face communication, business is done via the phones and computers, so is communication with family members and friends.
Because of the fast paced life many parents have a drive through relationship with their children. Some secular holidays celebrated by Americans are: ???Memorial Day ???Independence Day ???Labour Day ???Halloween ???Mother’s Day ???Father’s Day Cultural norms of Japan Japan has absorbed many ideas from other countries over the course of its history, including technology, customs and forms of cultural expression and has developed its unique culture while integrating these imports. The Japanese lifestyle today is a rich blend of Asian influenced traditional culture and western influenced modern culture. The Japanese Language
The official language of Japan is Japanese, the Japanese language has many different dialects, these dialects differ in pronunciation. However the Tokyo dialect is understood by most if not all, as the Tokyo dialect is the standard form of spoken Japanese. This id the dialect used in schools, on the radio and on the television. A number of Japanese can also speak English, there are a number of Japanese words that are based on the English language for example guruupu-group. Written Japanese is considered to be one of the most difficult written systems in the world, each character is a symbol that stands for a complete word or syllable.
Religions in Japan Religion in Japan is mainly associated with Shinto and Buddhism, Shinto being the oldest. The Shinto religion has many followers in Japan, the Shintoists worship many gods, called kami. Most Japanese people do not exclusively identify themselves as adherents of a single religion; rather, they incorporate elements of various religions in a syncretic fashion. Japan grants full religious freedom, allowing minority religions like Christianity, Islam and Sikhism to be practiced. 84% to 96% of Japanese who adhere to Shinto and Buddhism are not based on self-identification but come primarily family beliefs and practice.
A few religious holidays celebrated by Japanese are: ???Bon ???Omisoka Japanese Food Japanese people serve rice at almost every meal as this is their main food. It is often simply boiled and eaten with pickled vegetables. Japanese cuisine offers a vast array of regional specialties, many of them originating from dishes prepared using traditional recipes with local ingredients. Mainly, there are Kanto region food and Kansai region food. Kanto region foods taste very strong. For example the dashi-based broth for serving udon noodles is heavy on dark soy sauce, similar to soba broth.
On the other hand Kansai region foods are lightly seasoned, with clear udon noodles made with light soy sauce. Japanese Clothing/Dress Japanese clothing and traditional Japanese clothes much like U. S. clothing is worn to compliment the seasons. The traditional form of Japanese clothing in general is called wafuku. Japanese clothing and are worn also based off a person’s age or by the event. The Japanese have always placed high emphasis on their clothes. Today, most persons wear western style clothing outside the home. Many living in the cities keep up with the newest styles by Japanese, American, European, fashion designers.
Sports played by Japanese Sumo is a traditional Japanese sport that still enjoys immense popularity among Japanese. In sumo two wrestlers face each other in a ring, the wrestler who brings his opponent down to the ground or pushes him out of the ring is the winner. Another traditional sport is karate which the Japanese got from China. Other sports/games played by Japanese are: motor racing/drifting martial arts, karate, kendo, aikido and judo. The daily life of Japanese ` Life In Japanese Culture is not easy. The Japanese people work many hours.
Offices are jam-packed open space with very little privacy. Death from over-work is not rare, and the general tendency is to sacrifice ones self for the company. Life in Japanese Culture involves going for drinks after work with colleagues. Most office workers arrive home on the last train and see their families on weekends only. Showing emotions is very restricted in Japanese Daily Life. Japanese are in general very reserved. Japanese don’t show affection in public, kissing, hugging and holding hands is very rare scenes in the Japanese street.
Even patting on the back is not acceptable. A few secular holidays celebrated by Japanese are: ???New years Day ???Children’s Day ???Tanabata Comparison between Jamaican, American, and Japanese food, dress, sports, religion, language, and daily life Food – Jamaica and America are similar where food is concerned in the sense that their foods are varied and are influenced by the many different cultures in these country. Japan on the other hand is different since their food is unique to there country or to people from that culture.
Dress/Clothing ??? Japan and America are slightly similar where dress/clothing is concerned, they both wear cloths to complement the season. Jamaicans on the other hand basically have one season, summer, so they wear clothing fit for the summer all year round. Jamaica like America and Japan has a high sense of fashion. Jamaica is said to be the best dressed nation. Sports – All three countries/culturies have a few sports in common for example the all do motor racing, America and Jamaica are competitively involved in track and field, they both play basketball, golf, tennis, surfing.
The Japanese tend to stick to their traditional soprts or games. Religions ??? Freedom of religion is granted in all three countries, in Japan there are two main religions practiced while in Jamaica and America there are a wide range of religions. Christians make up a large percentage of the population in Jamaica and America while Christanity is less than one percent in Japan, there can be found way more aithests in America than Japan and Jamaica ass most people in these believe in God. Language ??? Both Jamaica and Japan have different dialects in their language.
America and Jamaica has a common language, English, though it is one language it differs in both countries as Americans speak American English while Jamaicans speak “The Queen’s English” Britian’s English. Daily Life ??? Like Americans Japanese work very had and live a fast paced life having very little time for themselves, Jamaican on the other hand are very laid back, living an easy going life, they separate their secular life from their social life. Jamaicans place grate emphasis on family meals especialy on a Sunday. Name : Monique Carty Group : FOA – 2a Instructor : Mrs. Thaw Due date : July 15, 2010
Introduction This project contains information the cultural differences between Jamaica Japan and the United States of America. Also included in this project are the comparisons made between their dress/clothing, languages, religions, food, sports, and their way of life. Acknowledgment A big thank you to Mr. Carty for providing the needed resources for the successful completion of this project, also much thanks to my fellow classmates for the well needed assistance the rendered last but not least, thank you to Mr. Kemar Bogle for support given leading to the successful completion of this project.