Jamaica marks slavery abolition

Gap-fill exercise

Fill in all the gaps, then press "Check" to check your answers. Use the "Hint" button to get a free letter if an answer is giving you trouble. You can also click on the "[?]" button to get a clue. Note that you will lose points if you ask for hints or clues!


A special ceremony, 'the funeral of the ancestors', took place yesterday in the Jamaican capital, Kingston, as part of commemorations that have been held around the world to mark the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the British slave trade. The BBC's Rachel Harvey was there and sent this report:

Listen to the story



A solitary hewn from animal bones sounding start of here. On the waterfront of Kingston's natural harbour, where centuries ago laden with slaves would have moored up, a large and colourful crowd is gathered.

This is a event - Rastafarians, Christians, Hindus, Muslims, together to honour a common heritage. The Reverend Earnley Gordon of the Anglican Church in Kingston says it's important to the past, however troubled that history may be.

REVEREND EARNLEY GORDON: Modern Jamaica is learning that we should , we should reconcile, we should never return to any form of slavery.

And this is a combination of and celebration, honouring those slaves who perished on the passage from Africa, those who died of or abuse on the sugar plantations, but also praising those who resisted , those whose rebellions played such a crucial role in their own eventual freedom.

Later a scroll with the names of a slaves will be buried under the of a tree at the water's edge - the spirits of the ancestors laid to rest.

Rachel Harvey, BBC News, Kingston, Jamaica