Country

noun KUN-try ˈkʌntri

Also spelled contry, a country

The rural areas of Jamaica, away from Kingston and the coastal towns — the deep countryside of hills, farms, and small districts where cultivation, tradition, and a slower pace of life hold sway. To go 'a country' is to head out to the rural parishes, to family land, the provision ground, and the old ways, and 'country people' and their customs are set against the hustle of 'town'. The word carries the whole world of rural Jamaican life, its roots, its hardships, and its deep sense of home.

  • Mi a go a country fi di weekend.

    I'm going to the countryside for the weekend.

  • Him grow up a country an move a town.

    He grew up in the country and moved to the city.

  • Country food fresh an sweet.

    Country food is fresh and delicious.

From English 'country' in the sense of countryside; in Jamaica it specifically names the rural interior as opposed to the urban centres.

Said 'a country' (to the country). Carries warm associations of roots, family land and tradition, but sometimes teasing ones of being unsophisticated.