15 Nations Global Tour: Panama (Stop #8)

Profile manager: David Randall [send private message]

This sub-project is part of the larger 15 Nations Global Tour. Please visit the main project page for details on the goals and objectives of this project.

Geography

Panama is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the south. Its capital and largest city is Panama City, whose metropolitan area is home to nearly half the country's inhabitants.

Demographics

Panama has a population of about 4 million people. The nation's urban population exceeds 75 percent, making it the most urbanized country in Central America. The population of Panama is about 65% Mestizo (mixed white and Native American), 12% Native American, 9% Black or African descent, 7% white, and 7% mulatto (mixed Black and white).

Spanish is the official and dominant language of Panama. About 93% of the population speak Spanish as their primary language. The Spanish spoken in Panama is known as Panamanian Spanish. About 14% of Panamanians speak English

Christianity is the main religion in Panama. About 63% of the population identifies as Roman Catholic, and 25% identify as evangelical Protestant. The Jehovah's Witnesses were the third largest congregation comprising about 1.5% of the population.

History

Panama was inhabited by indigenous tribes before Spanish colonists arrived in the 16th century. It broke away from Spain in 1821 and joined the Republic of Gran Colombia, a union of New Granada, Ecuador, and Venezuela. After Gran Colombia dissolved in 1831, Panama and New Granada eventually became the Republic of Colombia. With U.S. backing, Panama seceded from Colombia in 1903, allowing the construction of the Panama Canal to be completed by the United States Army Corps of Engineers between 1904 and 1914. The 1977 Torrijos–Carter Treaties agreed to transfer the canal from the United States to Panama on December 31, 1999.

• 1821 - Gran Columbia gains independence from Spain
• 1824 - Panama is created as the Isthmus Department (aka The Department of Panama)
• 1831 - The Department of New Grenada is established
• 1855 - Panama become a state within New Grenada
• 1858 - New Grenada is replaced by the Grenadine Federation
• 1863 - The Grenadine Federation becomes the United States of Columbia
• 1886 - The United States of Columbia becomes the Republic of Columbia
• 1903 - Panama gains independence from Columbia as the republic of Panama

Notable Panamanians

In the below list, columns can be sorted by clicking on the arrow button in any category heading box. A "C" in the final column denotes a Notable who has been successfully connected to the Big Tree. "N/C" stands for Not Connected.

Notable	Born	Died	Claim to Fame	Photo	C
Tomas de Herrera	1804	1854	President of the State of the Isthmus and Republic of the New Grenada		Connected
Manuel Amador Gurrero	1833	1909	First President of Panama		Connected
Amelia Denis de Icaza	1836	1911	First female poet of Panama		N/C
Nacisco Garay	1876	1953	Composer and Diplomat		N/C
Arnulfo Arias Madrid	1901	1988	Three-time President of Panama		Connected
Adelaide Lambert	1907	1996	Olympic Swimmer		Connected
Edward A. Murphy Jr.	1918	1990	Aerospace Engineer and Namesake of Murphy's Law		Connected
Lloyd LaBeach	1922	1999	Olympic Sprinter		Connected
Carlos Fuentes	1928	2012	Novelist		Connected
Omar Torrijos Herrera	1929	1981	Leader of the Panamanian Revolution		N/C
Manuel Noriega	1934	2017	Panamanian Dictator and Drug Kingpin		N/C
Rod Carew	1945	LIVING	Baseball Player		Connected
Roberto Duran	1951	LIVING	Boxer		N/C
Laurentino Cortiz	1953	LIVING	Current President of Panama		N/C
Miguel Bosé	1958	LIVING	Pop Singer and Actor		Connected