And you can claim Jamaican citizenship if one of your parents was born in Jamaica. Mixed race people are very common in Jamaica, including mixed Indians, Chinese and European. Choosing country music over reggae, or fish and chips over curried goat is a sure way to get people to examine your Jamaican claim more closely. The Jamaican term roast breadfruit refers to someone who is dark skinned but has preferences that would be considered white or European. We know that some people have food allergies, and some just don’t like certain foods, but if you honestly think that a beef patty is one of the ingredients in a hamburger it’s going to be harder to convince people that you have an ounce of “Jamaican-ness” within you. If you hate jerk chicken, have never eaten ackee and saltfish, and have to ask Google “what is blue drawers?” then it’s no wonder that people are questioning your claim to be Jamaican. On the other hand, if your name sounds too Hispanic, European or Asian for that matter, you’ll have a harder time convincing folks that you have ties to the island. Many Jamaicans have English names so it can be said that there is no name which is authentic to the island per se. On the flip side, there are many ignorant people whose first words to a Jamaican will be “You speak such good English!” seemingly unaware that the majority of Jamaicans are indeed fluent in the language. Some foreigners also confuse the Jamaican accent with other Caribbean islands and might not recognize a person’s accent as being authentic. On the island, both languages are used interchangeably in daily life and many Jamaicans who grew up abroad are well versed in the language of their parents and grandparents.

So if you claim to be Jamaican and don’t know simple patois phrases, your “Jamaican-ness” will be questioned. Jamaica’s official language is English but a Jamaican is also expected to be able to speak Jamaican patois. But if you don’t actively practice any aspect of a culture that has captivated people all over the world, it should be no surprise that there are those who question your Jamaican identity. If you were not born in Jamaica, you can still claim Jamaican citizenship by heritage. Jamaica is a cultural melting pot where the descendants of Africans, Chinese, Indians and Europeans live together in sweet reggae harmony, some dark, some light skinned, some speak patois, and some don’t. Lies! Yes the Rasta does exist but he is a needle in the giant haystack of cultures and lifestyles that make up the Jamaican society. To many foreigners, their idea of a Jamaican is a Rasta man with a ganja splif in mouth whose every sentence is spiced up with “bomboclaat”.

You don’t fit the mold of a stereotypical Jamaican. With that said, it is a common belief in North American and European countries that persons of a lighter hue are not Jamaican because they don’t fit the stereotypical “look” of a Jamaican.Ģ. Jamaicans run the gamut of the colour spectrum – from white Jamaicans of European descent to the darker skinned people of African ancestry and every shade of brown in between. Here are 12 typical reasons that people may question your claim to be Jamaican. But many people of Jamaican heritage struggle to identify with their Jamaican roots and may sometimes hear that they’re not Jamaican enough. At the last estimate, the government of Jamaica believes that there are nearly as many Jamaicans living abroad as the three million people who live on the island.

You dunno jamaican