"Jamaica, Land We Love" is the
national anthem of
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...
, officially adopted in July 1962. It was chosen after a competition from September 1961 to 31 March 1962, in which the lyrics of the national anthem were selected by
Jamaica's Houses of Parliament. When Jamaica was
granted independence on 6 August 1962, "Jamaica, Land We Love" continued to be officially used as the national anthem.
History
Prior to the declaration of the
independence of Jamaica, Jamaica was made a
West Indies Federation province of the
British West Indies, still under the rule of the United Kingdom. The nation entered the federation under the rule of Premier
Norman Manley, who also made various constitutional amendments to allow the process of
decolonisation to rapidly take place. These amendments also allowed the country to have more self-governing powers and permitted the formation of a cabinet led by a
premier. Premier Norman Manley's participation in the West Indies Federation was
unpopular and led to the independence of the country on 6 August 1962, and the national anthem selected in July 1962 was officially used from that date.
In September 1961, the leading
People's National Party announced a competition to write the lyrics of Jamaica's future national anthem, which would be judged by selected members of Jamaica's Houses of Parliament.
The competition received almost 100 script entries, and the competition closed on 31 March 1962, after this ending date was decided on 17 March. The Houses of Parliament were given two options of anthems to vote for on 19 July 1962, and a script was chosen with an overwhelming majority.
The winning script was written by Reverend Hon. Hugh Sherlock, the music was composed by Hon. Robert Lightbourne, and the anthem was arranged by Mapletoft Poulle and Christine Alison Poulle.
The Jamaican national anthem, "Jamaica, Land We Love," was originally performed at the
National Stadium in
Kingston, on August 6, 1962, during the official independence ceremonies.
Use
Salutes

Everyone should stand at attention for the National Anthem, with males removing their caps. Those in uniform should salute. The
Governor-General and
Prime Minister
A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
's arrival and departure will be marked by the performance or playing of the opening verse of the National Anthem. Furthermore, singing the National Anthem should be incorporated into the process of raising and lowering the flag at the beginning and end of each
school year, as well as during
Independence Day
An independence day is an annual event memorialization, commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or Sovereign state, statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or after the end of a milit ...
celebrations.
Other uses
The anthem has appeared in television shows and documentaries on
Jamaican culture and
history
History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...
. It is commonly used for national festivals and television broadcasts, including Independence Day and athletic events starring
Jamaican athletes.
During
sign-off sequences in Jamaica, television and radio stations customarily play the national anthem "Jamaica, Land We Love." This custom honors an era when broadcasting was not a 24-hour operation, with stations suspending operations overnight. As an example,
Television Jamaica and
Radio Jamaica are recognized for incorporating the national anthem into their sign-off routines. At the conclusion of their daily broadcasts, these stations traditionally play the anthem, marking a formal end to their programming before they cease transmission.
Lyrics
References
External links
Jamaican National Anthemon Jamaican government site
Richie Stephens performs Jamaica's National Anthemon
SoundCloud
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Jamaican songs
North American anthems
National symbols of Jamaica
National anthems
Songs about Jamaica
Compositions in C major
1962 songs