Minister Highlights Deep Cultural and Ancestral Connections Between Jamaica and Ghana

Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Hon. Olivia Grange, has highlighted the deep cultural and ancestral connections between Jamaica and the Republic of Ghana, describing the Seville Heritage Park in St. Ann as sacred ground where history, memory and identity converge.

She was speaking during a welcome reception and tour of the heritage site on Sunday (January 25), which formed part of a visit to the island by a Ghanaian delegation, headed by the country’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, His Excellency Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa.

Ms. Grange said Seville stands as one of Jamaica’s most significant historical sites, noting that it served as a meeting place for cultures and civilisations long before the transatlantic slave trade.

“This is considered sacred ground where all the cultures meet,” she said, explaining that the area was once a Taino settlement, the original inhabitants of Jamaica, and later became the site of Spanish and British colonisation.

She noted that Seville also marks the arrival of the first recorded African in Jamaica around 1503 and went on to become a major plantation estate where thousands of enslaved Africans lived, worked and died.

“Thousands of enslaved Africans lived, worked and died on this Seville estate, which was a major producer of sugar for export,” Ms. Grange said.

The Minister further outlined Jamaica’s efforts to honour enslaved Africans whose remains were excavated at the site, noting that tributes have been paid annually since the late 1990s.

“It is those of our ancestors to whom we pay homage today,” she said, adding that July 31 each year is observed at Seville to honour the ancestors whose remains were discovered on the property.

Ms. Grange also recalled the historic repatriation of the remains of an enslaved African woman, known as Crystal, to Ghana in 1998 as part of what was dubbed the ‘Great Homecoming’.

“We are proud that the government of Ghana consented at the time for Crystal to be reinterred in her home country where she lies at rest, in defiance of the door of no return,” she said.

Ms. Grange emphasised that African cultural traditions survived enslavement and continue to shape Jamaica’s identity, pointing to the resistance of enslaved Africans and the enduring legacy of the Maroons.

“Among these militant warriors were the Maroons of Jamaica,” the Minister said, noting that their cultural practices, resistance and community structures remain vital elements of Jamaica’s heritage.

She highlighted the strong Ghanaian influence in Jamaica’s cultural expressions, particularly in traditions such as Kumina and Maroon culture, which she said have direct ties to the Akan people of Ghana.

“Our connection can be observed in Jamaica’s cultural legacy,” she said, noting similarities in language, naming practices and spiritual traditions.

Meanwhile, Minister Ablakwa said the cultural continuity between Ghana and Jamaica is immediately evident, particularly through music, instruments and dance.

“The same abeng we call it back in Ghana… the drums, same drums that we play up until this day,” he noted, describing the cultural expressions showcased during the ceremony as authentic and unbroken.

He said the preservation of African traditions in Jamaica reflects a powerful legacy of resilience.

“Without any of us coming here to coach you… we were met with culture that is so unadulterated, that is so pure, that we could relate,” Minister Ablakwa said.