Faces of Costa Rica

West Indians: On the Other Side of Costa Rica

West Indians, mostly from Jamaica, were a major source of labor for the Costa Rican railroad and banana plantations. Immigration began in the early 1870s, when West Indians were hired to work on the railroad project. Later, they came to work on the banana plantations. In 1908, approximately 75 percent of plantation workers were West Indians.

By 1920 more than 17,000 West Indians, mostly of African descent, lived on the once sparsely populated Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.

Most were British subjects, few were naturalized Costa Ricans. They came to Costa Rica looking for economic opportunities, opportunities that were scarce in the West Indies. Racism and isolation were a daily part of their lives. The separation between the Caribbean Coast and the rest of Costa Rica was evident, and even supported by a law forbidding West Indians from leaving the area. They were not recognized as Costa Rican citizens until after the 1948 revolution.

Today, the Caribbean province of Limon is the home of many Jamaican descendents. English and patois are the main languages in the area.