Saint Andrew

Saint Andrew is a parish, situated in the southeast of Jamaica in the county of Surrey. It lies north, west and east of Kingston, and stretches into the Blue Mountains. St. Andrew was one of the first parishes in Jamaica to be established by law in 1867. Before being established, it was known as ‘'Liguanea'’ (one of the few surviving Arawak words, presumably stemming from the word iguana, meaning “lizard”). Liguanea was the original name of the parish of St. Andrew, but now only refers to the small commercial centre mid-way between Half-Way Tree and Papine.

Half-Way Tree, the capital of St. Andrew, is commonly referred to as the midway mark between what is called “Uptown” and “Downtown”. When the Spaniards first arrived, a huge cotton tree stood near to the parish church, at the  junction of the important roads which led from Spanish Town and Kingston to the easterly parishes of Portland (formerly St George) and St. Mary.