The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Sites are places of importance to cultural or natural heritage as described in the UNESCO World Heritage Convention, established in 1972. Cultural heritage consists of monuments (such as architectural works, monumental sculptures, or inscriptions), groups of buildings, and sites (including archaeological sites). Natural features (consisting of physical and biological formations), geological and physiographical formations (including habitats of threatened species of animals and plants), and natural sites which are important from the point of view of science, conservation or natural beauty, are defined as natural heritage. Jamaica accepted the convention on January 18, 1980, making its historical sites eligible for inclusion on the list. Jamaica has two World Heritage Sites: Blue and John Crow Mountains (inscribed in 2015) and The Archaeological Ensemble of 17th Century Port Royal (inscribed in 2025). The country also has two sites on the tentative list.
World Heritage Sites UNESCO lists sites under ten criteria; each entry must meet at least one of the criteria. Criteria i through vi are cultural, and vii through x are natural.
+ Site Image Location Year listed DescriptionBlue and John Crow Mountains Portland Parish, Saint Andrew Parish, Saint Mary Parish, Saint Thomas Parish 2015 1356rev; iii, vi, x (mixed) The site encompasses a rugged and extensively forested mountainous region in the south-east of Jamaica, which provided refuge first for the indigenous Tainos fleeing slavery and then for Maroons (former enslaved peoples). They resisted the European colonial system in this isolated region by establishing a network of trails, hiding places and settlements, which form the Nanny Town Heritage Route. The forests offered the Maroons everything they needed for their survival. They developed strong spiritual connections with the mountains, still manifest through the intangible cultural legacy of, for example, religious rites, traditional medicine and dances. The site is also a biodiversity hotspot for the Caribbean Islands with a high proportion of endemic plant species, especially lichens, mosses and certain flowering plants. Text was copied from this source, which is available under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 IGO (CC BY 3.0 IGO) license.The Archaeological Ensemble of 17th Century Port RoyalKingston Parish, Saint Andrew Parish 2025 1595; iv, vi (cultural)
Tentative List Site Image Location Criteria Year of submission DescriptionSeville Heritage Park Saint Ann Parishii, iii, iv (cultural)2009Cockpit Country Protected AreaTrelawny Parishiii, vi, x (mixed)2025
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