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Afro-Panamanians are Panamanians of African descent. The Afro-Panamanian population can be mainly broken into one of two categories "Afro-Colonials", Afro-Panamanians descended from slaves brought to Panama during the colonial period, and "Afro-Antilleans," West Indian immigrant-descendants with origins in
Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...
,
Martinique Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in th ...
,
Saint Lucia Saint Lucia ( acf, Sent Lisi, french: Sainte-Lucie) is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs, two Amerindian ...
,
Guadeloupe Guadeloupe (; ; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Gwadloup, ) is an archipelago and overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galante, La Désirade, and the ...
,
Dominica Dominica ( or ; Kalinago: ; french: Dominique; Dominican Creole French: ), officially the Commonwealth of Dominica, is an island country in the Caribbean. The capital, Roseau, is located on the western side of the island. It is geographically ...
,
Grenada Grenada ( ; Grenadian Creole French: ) is an island country in the West Indies in the Caribbean Sea at the southern end of the Grenadines island chain. Grenada consists of the island of Grenada itself, two smaller islands, Carriacou and Pe ...
,
Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...
,
Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...
,
The Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to ...
,
Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...
,
Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...
, and
Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...
whose ancestors were brought in to build the
Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a conduit ...
. Afro-Panamanians can be found in the towns and cities of Colón,
Cristóbal Cristóbal or Cristobal, the Spanish version of Christopher, is a masculine given name and a surname which may refer to: Given name *Cristóbal Balenciaga (1895–1972), Spanish fashion designer *Cristóbal Cobo (born 1976), Chilean academic *Cri ...
and Balboa, the
Río Abajo Río Abajo is a corregimiento within Panama City, in Panamá District, Panamá Province, Panama with a population of 26,607 as of 2010. Its population as of 1990 was 33,155; its population as of 2000 was 28,714. It is a West Indian neighborhoo ...
area of
Panama City Panama City ( es, Ciudad de Panamá, links=no; ), also known as Panama (or Panamá in Spanish), is the capital and largest city of Panama. It has an urban population of 880,691, with over 1.5 million in its metropolitan area. The city is locat ...
, the Canal Zone and the province of Bocas del Toro.


Early Period

The first Africans to arrive in
Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...
came with
Vasco Núñez de Balboa Vasco Núñez de Balboa (; c. 1475around January 12–21, 1519) was a Spanish explorer, governor, and conquistador. He is best known for having crossed the Isthmus of Panama to the Pacific Ocean in 1513, becoming the first European to lead an ...
, in 1513. Panama was a very important territory because it had the shortest route from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Goods were taken from ports in Portobelo and Nombre de Dios, transported overland to ports in Panama City and boarded on ships headed to
South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...
. Initially, indigenous labor was used. Due to abuse and disease, the indigenous population was decimated.
Bartolomé de Las Casas Bartolomé de las Casas, OP ( ; ; 11 November 1484 – 18 July 1566) was a 16th-century Spanish landowner, friar, priest, and bishop, famed as a historian and social reformer. He arrived in Hispaniola as a layman then became a Dominican friar ...
advocated getting slaves from Africa. By 1517, the trade in Africans was underway. Initially slaves were used to work and maintain ships and port. It later turned to transporting goods across the isthmus. The transportation of goods was grueling not only due to the 60 kilometers of harsh tropical rainforest, but also to bad weather and attacks by indigenous people.


Origins

It is difficult to pinpoint and identify the place of origin of the African slaves brought to Panama during the colonial era. According to the study of Martin Jamieson, some authors point out that most were from
Guinea-Bissau Guinea-Bissau ( ; pt, Guiné-Bissau; ff, italic=no, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫 𞤄𞤭𞤧𞤢𞥄𞤱𞤮, Gine-Bisaawo, script=Adlm; Mandinka: ''Gine-Bisawo''), officially the Republic of Guinea-Bissau ( pt, República da Guiné-Bissau, links=no ) ...
. Other authors point out that the slaves came from the region between southern
Senegal River ,french: Fleuve Sénégal) , name_etymology = , image = Senegal River Saint Louis.jpg , image_size = , image_caption = Fishermen on the bank of the Senegal River estuary at the outskirts of Saint-Louis, Senegal ...
and
northern Angola Angola is located on the western Atlantic Coast of Southern Africa between Namibia and the Republic of the Congo. It also is bordered by the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia to the east. The country consists of a sparsely watered and s ...
. In fact, according to other authors, whether from 1514 began arriving Africans, brought from West Africa to work on plantations in Panama, from 1523, men and women who arrived mainly came from
Guinea-Bissau Guinea-Bissau ( ; pt, Guiné-Bissau; ff, italic=no, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫 𞤄𞤭𞤧𞤢𞥄𞤱𞤮, Gine-Bisaawo, script=Adlm; Mandinka: ''Gine-Bisawo''), officially the Republic of Guinea-Bissau ( pt, República da Guiné-Bissau, links=no ) ...
,
Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...
, the
Congo Basin The Congo Basin (french: Bassin du Congo) is the sedimentary basin of the Congo River. The Congo Basin is located in Central Africa, in a region known as west equatorial Africa. The Congo Basin region is sometimes known simply as the Congo. It con ...
and
Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...
. The presence of this factor determined the ethnic-cultural core musical features of the Panamanian people. The form of communication used by Africans since 1607 (due to their songs, their instruments and their dances, their numerous uprisings - many of whom fled to settle in the forests, under the guidance of legendary figures like
Bayano Bayano, also known as Ballano or Vaino, was an African enslaved by Spaniards who led the biggest slave revolts of 16th century Panama. Captured from the Yoruba community in West Africa, it has been argued that his name means ''idol''. Different ...
, Anton Mandinga or Domingo Congo-and the conclusion of a peace treaty in 1607, which granted some freedom, but with restrictions, to thousands of former slaves), and is still cultivated by the "Congo" (a culture, and genre of Afrocolonial dance from Republic of Panama, characterized by a violent expression and erotic dancing, and is almost always associated with some sort of mime and theater, with themes of infamous historical episodes of African slave trade, slavery and the resulting slave rebellions during the time of the conquest and colonialism. Students of this culture did find parallels as their
cryptolect A cant is the jargon or language of a group, often employed to exclude or mislead people outside the group.McArthur, T. (ed.) ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (1992) Oxford University Press It may also be called a cryptolect, argot ...
is similar to funeral practices of
San Basilio de Palenque San Basilio de Palenque or Palenque de San Basilio, often referred to by the locals simply as Palenke, is a Palenque village and corregimiento in the Municipality of Mahates, Bolivar in northern Colombia. Palenque was the first free African to ...
,
Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
, who are of Congolese and Ghanaian origin. The study of this culture helps determine at least some origins of Afro-Panamanians), is the greeting with feet and talking backwards, as a mixture of European, African and Indigenous cultures. Already by 1560, there were
maroon Maroon ( US/ UK , Australia ) is a brownish crimson color that takes its name from the French word ''marron'', or chestnut. "Marron" is also one of the French translations for "brown". According to multiple dictionaries, there are var ...
communities in Bayano palanqueras, and Cerro de Cabra, Portobelo, Panama. Moreover, besides the slaves which some authors may have been imported to Panama from, mostly, Guinea Bissau, Cameroon, Congo and Angola (which originated culture "Congos" in 1607), according to Guzman Navarro, many of the slaves who arrived in Panama in the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries were transported by French traffickers, from Goree slave factory in
Senegambia The Senegambia (other names: Senegambia region or Senegambian zone,Barry, Boubacar, ''Senegambia and the Atlantic Slave Trade'', (Editors: David Anderson, Carolyn Brown; trans. Ayi Kwei Armah; contributors: David Anderson, American Council of Le ...
. During the period when the ''asiento'' was granted to the
South Sea Company The South Sea Company (officially The Governor and Company of the merchants of Great Britain, trading to the South Seas and other parts of America, and for the encouragement of the Fishery) was a British joint-stock company founded in Ja ...
, which lasted until the mid-eighteenth century, slaves came mostly from the
Windward Coast The Windward Coast was used to describe an area of West Africa located on the coast between Cape Mount and Assini, i.e. the coastlines of the modern states of Liberia and Ivory Coast, to the west of what was called the Gold Coast. A related re ...
(
Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean ...
- west of
Ivory Coast Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital is Yamoussoukro, in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre is ...
) and the
Gold Coast Gold Coast may refer to: Places Africa * Gold Coast (region), in West Africa, which was made up of the following colonies, before being established as the independent nation of Ghana: ** Portuguese Gold Coast (Portuguese, 1482–1642) ** Dutch G ...
(east of the Ivory Coast-
Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...
), but also came some slaves from
Senegambia The Senegambia (other names: Senegambia region or Senegambian zone,Barry, Boubacar, ''Senegambia and the Atlantic Slave Trade'', (Editors: David Anderson, Carolyn Brown; trans. Ayi Kwei Armah; contributors: David Anderson, American Council of Le ...
. In the last decades of the eighteenth century the Spanish Gaditana Company was authorized to import African slaves, although most came from other American colonies, including Cartagena de Indias,
Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.
,
Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
,
Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...
, and the
French Caribbean The French West Indies or French Antilles (french: Antilles françaises, ; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Antiy fwansez) are the parts of France located in the Antilles islands of the Caribbean: * The two overseas departments of: ** Guadeloupe, ...
colonies.La expresión musical popular centroamericana y la herencia africana
(in Spanish: Centroamerican popular musical expression and African heritage)


African ethnic groups and their arrival to Panama

When registered as slaves, certain Africans used their African ethnicity and possible places of origin as first or last names. This resulted in names such as Luis Mozambique, Congo Anton, Christopher Sape, Miguel Biafara, Bran Gaspar, Pedro Mandinga, Anton Bañol and John Jolofo (Wolof), to name a few. This confirms the contribution of slaves from Senegambia, Ghana, Central Africa and Mozambique. Thus, the name of Africans living in Panama allows us to draw some lines on its possible origin: Mozambique, Congo and the region Kasanga, Congo-Angola, Sao Tome, the island of the same name in the equatorial region, and the region situated between Portuguese Guinea and Senegal in West Africa: Manding, specifically, gelofo/
Wolof Wolof or Wollof may refer to: * Wolof people, an ethnic group found in Senegal, Gambia, and Mauritania * Wolof language, a language spoken in Senegal, Gambia, and Mauritania * The Wolof or Jolof Empire, a medieval West African successor of the Mal ...
, Bañol ( Banyun, established in Senegambia and Guinea Bissau), Zape (Sierra Leone), Bioho (Bijagos), Biafara, and Bran. They came through several circuits and networks that joined the "Middle America" with the economy in the South Atlantic, in which Panama and Cartagena were central ports and points of passage required for the transfer of Africans during the colonial period. On the African side, and according to
Enriqueta Vila Vilar Enriqueta Vila Vilar (born 1935) is a Spanish historian and researcher specialised on the History of the Americas. Biography Born in 1935 in Seville, she earned a PhD in History of the Americas from the University of Seville in 1972. She worke ...
, major African ports' output of forced labor during the sixteenth century were the islands of Santiago in Cape Verde, São Tomé in the Gulf of Guinea and Luanda in Angola, confirming what Rodney Hilton called "almost exclusive relations between Upper Guinea and the middle region of America." In West Africa existed, by then, a group of Portuguese merchants called "reindeiros", who had a monopoly on the sale of captives and "selling" the right to sell slaves, of whose earnings the Crown received a percentage. The buying and selling of people involved a complex network of officials and employees installed at key points in the sales network and was articulated across the Atlantic. While there were a small number of traders traveling from Africa to America during the sixteenth century, the fact is that it was this a small number who had direct control of large contracts to take enslaved Africans in Cape Verde, Sao Tome and Angola. In this last stand Gomez Reinel and Juan Rodríguez Coutiño (governor of Angola), who lived in Panama working ranches in the early seventeenth century with his brother Manuel de Souza Coutinho, known as Louis de Sousa, the Dominican friar who in 1602 was responsible for the seats in Cartagena.


Afro-Antillean migration waves (1849–1910)

The first Afro-Antillean migration to Panama occurred in mid-nineteenth century. The
California Gold Rush The California Gold Rush (1848–1855) was a gold rush that began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California fro ...
began in 1849, and the subsequent attraction of wealth highlighted the need to facilitate travel between the east and west coasts of the United States. This raised the urgency of building a railroad across the narrowest point of the American continent, but the problem the engineers of the railway company faced was that Panama did not have the labor force needed to provide workers for the construction of railroad. Simultaneously, an overpopulation crisis in the Caribbean was causing labor surpluses. These two situations combined the need for workers in Panama and unemployment in the Antilles, which resulted the influx of Afro-Antillean people to the isthmus. During the immigration of 1844, people came from
Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...
,
Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...
,
Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...
,
Martinique Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in th ...
,
Guadeloupe Guadeloupe (; ; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Gwadloup, ) is an archipelago and overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galante, La Désirade, and the ...
,
Dominica Dominica ( or ; Kalinago: ; french: Dominique; Dominican Creole French: ), officially the Commonwealth of Dominica, is an island country in the Caribbean. The capital, Roseau, is located on the western side of the island. It is geographically ...
,
Leeward Antilles The Leeward Antilles ( nl, Benedenwindse Eilanden) are a chain of islands in the Caribbean – specifically, the southerly islands of the Lesser Antilles (and, in turn, the Antilles and the West Indies) along the southeastern fringe of the C ...
(Dutch and Venezuelan islands north of
Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
),
Grenada Grenada ( ; Grenadian Creole French: ) is an island country in the West Indies in the Caribbean Sea at the southern end of the Grenadines island chain. Grenada consists of the island of Grenada itself, two smaller islands, Carriacou and Pe ...
, St. Kitts,
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Saint Vincent and the Grenadines () is an island country in the Caribbean. It is located in the southeast Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, which lie in the West Indies at the southern end of the eastern border of the Caribbean Sea wh ...
, etc. After 1880, the cultivation of banana in Central America was expanded, and The
United Fruit Company The United Fruit Company (now Chiquita) was an American multinational corporation that traded in tropical fruit (primarily bananas) grown on Latin American plantations and sold in the United States and Europe. The company was formed in 1899 fro ...
and the Chiriqui Land Company were established in Bocas del Toro (Panama) and
Puerto Limon Puerto, a Spanish word meaning ''seaport'', may refer to: Places * El Puerto de Santa María, Andalusia, Spain *Puerto, a seaport town in Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines * Puerto Colombia, Colombia * Puerto Cumarebo, Venezuela * Puerto Galera, O ...
(
Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...
). These events again raised the need for Caribbean labor. The West Indians who migrated to Bocas del Toro were mainly of Ashanti- Fante origin. The third event that caused Afro-Caribbean immigration to Panama was the construction of the Panama Canal by the French. Due to the endurance shown by Afro-West Indians in the construction of railroads and projects in Bocas del Toro and Puerto Limon, the French company returned to the Caribbean to recruit workers. According to Lobinot Marrero, many of the West Indians who arrived in Panama during these years were from the
French Antilles The French West Indies or French Antilles (french: Antilles françaises, ; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Antiy fwansez) are the parts of France located in the Antilles islands of the Caribbean: * The two overseas departments of: ** Guadeloup ...
of
Martinique Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in th ...
and
Guadeloupe Guadeloupe (; ; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Gwadloup, ) is an archipelago and overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galante, La Désirade, and the ...
. Between 1906-1907, Panama received more than 2,800 workers from Martinique and about 2,000 from Guadeloupe. An estimated 50,000 Guadeloupeans and Martinicans participated in the construction of the
Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a conduit ...
between 1904 and 1914. In 2014, it was estimated that there were between 60,000 and 70,000 descendants of these West Indians living in Panama. In 1904, the construction of the Panama Canal was taken over by the United States due to the failure of the French company, again resulting in an influx of West Indian workers to Panama. Although between 1904 and 1914, the vast majority of Afro-West Indians who arrived in Panama worked a one-year contract with the idea of returning to their home islands once the project concluded. However, after construction of the canal was complete many Afro-Antillean people chose to stay in Panama. Many who remained got jobs in the Canal Zone, becoming the largest immigrant group in Panama. On the subject of Afro-Antillean Panama, Leslie B. Rout said that when the canal was opened in 1914, some 20,000 Afro-West Indians remained in Panama.


Cimarrones

Some African slaves used the isolated nature of transporting goods as an opportunity to escape slavery. Many people of African descent escaped into the sparsely settled terrain and formed Cimarroneras, or marooned societies. These ex-slaves were known as Cimarrones. Cimarrones would mount attacks on transport caravans so often that the attacks became very disruptive to trade by the 1550s. The most famous of these Cimarrones was
Bayano Bayano, also known as Ballano or Vaino, was an African enslaved by Spaniards who led the biggest slave revolts of 16th century Panama. Captured from the Yoruba community in West Africa, it has been argued that his name means ''idol''. Different ...
. In 1570, all Maroons were pardoned to stop the raiding. Famous Cimarrones proceeded to found Cimarroneras. Luis de Mozambique founded Santiago del Principe Cimarronera and Antón de Mandinga founded Santa la Real. It was with the Cimarrones of Panama that
Sir Francis Drake Sir Francis Drake ( – 28 January 1596) was an English explorer, sea captain, privateer, slave trader, naval officer, and politician. Drake is best known for his circumnavigation of the world in a single expedition, from 1577 to 1580 ( ...
made an alliance in 1572 in order to carry out his first independent attack on the New World Spanish colonies.


Slavery

Slaves were used in many functions in the areas of Portobelo and Panama City. Most worked as domestic servants in their masters' houses. Some were engaged in the production of textile and dyes. Others were skilled tradesmen—blacksmiths, carpenters, and cobblers. The discovery of gold also saw their use in mining. This strong dependency on slaves saw an increase in the slave population. For most of the 1600s and 1700s, Afro-Panamanians outnumbered whites. In 1610, the population consisted of 548 white men, 303 white women, 156 white children, 146
mulattoes (, ) is a racial classification to refer to people of mixed African and European ancestry. Its use is considered outdated and offensive in several languages, including English and Dutch, whereas in languages such as Spanish and Portuguese ...
, 148 West Indian blacks, and 3,500 African slaves. By 1625, Afro-Panamanians numbered 12,000 and by 1630 white Panamanians were outnumbered ten to one by Afro-Panamanians. By 1789, Afro-Panamanians numbered 23,000 out of a population of 36,000. Some slaves were able to buy their freedom or were emancipated by their masters. A few free blacks were able to get an education. Some became artisans and a few became lower bureaucrats in the government.


Independence

In 1821, Panama (at that time a part of Spain), sued for independence successfully. Independence brought about the end of slavery, but little changed for Afro-Panamanians. Changes did not come with independence and emancipation as was expected. Numerous race riots broke out in the 1830s, as many Afro-Panamanians were disappointed with the rate of societal progress. In 1838, Panama City had a major race riot which was quelled by the Hispanic elite. Afro-Panamanians continued life at the bottom of the racial caste system, with white Panamanians at the top. Mulattoes and Mestizos who claimed Hispanic heritage, and indigenous Panamanians were above blacks in the caste system. Job discrimination and social rejection because of ethnicity was rampant. Afro-Panamanians remained in a world apart from the greater culture.Peter Szok, "'La Patria es el Recuerdo', Hispanophile Nationalism in Early Twentieth-Century Panama, 1903-1941." ''Journal of Caribbean History'' 31.1 (1997): 149–184.


Antillean

In November 1903, the construction of the Panama Canal began. 50,000 workers migrated from Jamaica,
Martinique Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in th ...
, Barbados and
Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...
. The workers were referred to as ''Antilleans'' or derisively as ''chombos''. ''Antilleans'' and other black workers were paid less than white workers. Discrimination was rampant. Most supervisors were from the southern US, and implemented a type of southern segregation. The presence of West Indians had other repercussions. Creoles and
mestizos (; ; fem. ) is a term used for racial classification to refer to a person of mixed European and Indigenous American ancestry. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also refer to people who are culturally European even though their ...
who had a social status above blacks were also discriminated against. These groups were deeply offended and engaged in rampant discrimination of all blacks outside the general canal locale. Native blacks began to resent the West Indians, who they felt made things worse for them. In 1914, when the Panama Canal was completed, 20,000 West Indians remained in the country. 1926 Panamanian laws decreased immigration from the West Indies and later barred non-Spanish speaking blacks from entering the country.


Modern status

By the 1960s, Afro-Panamanians began to organize themselves politically, aligned with the labor movement. National Center of Panamanian Workers (CNTP) was at the center of Afro-Panamanian rights. A few Afro-Panamanians broke into the upper circle. A few were elected to the national assembly of the People Party, aligned with CNTP. One Afro-Panamanian was elected to the supreme court. During the 1970s, they organized congresses dealing with issues surrounding Afro-Panamanians, like discrimination of the National Symphony Orchestra against blacks. In 1980,
Manuel Noriega Manuel Antonio Noriega Moreno (; February 11, 1934 – May 29, 2017) was a Panamanian dictator, politician and military officer who was the ''de facto'' List of heads of state of Panama, ruler of Panama from 1983 to 1989. An authoritaria ...
, who had African ancestry, was elected. He became authoritarian and the United States in 1989 invaded Panama and removed Noriega. The hardest hit were Afro-Panamanian neighborhoods. During the 1990s, more congresses were formed to address the problems of Afro-Panamanians, like the destruction of black property during the invasion. Also the study of Afro-Panamanian took root. The Center of Panamanian Studies was formed. The
University of Panama The University of Panama ( es, Universidad de Panamá) was founded on October 7, 1935. Initially, it had 175 students learning education, commerce, natural sciences, pharmacy, pre-engineering or law. , it had 74,059 students distributed in 228 b ...
also began to focus more on Afro-Panamanian subjects as a discipline.


Notable Afro-Panamanians

*
Alejandro Yearwood Alejandro Alonso Yearwood Francis (born 29 April 1996) is a Panamanian professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Liga Panameña club Árabe Unido and the Panama national team. International career Yearwood made his debut for the ...
*
Rolando Blackburn Rolando Manrique Blackburn Ortega (born 9 January 1990) is a Panamanian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Primera División club FAS and the Panama national team. Club career Born in San Joaquín, Panamá, ...
*
César Blackman César Rodolfo Blackman Camarena (born 2 April 1998) is a Panamanian professional footballer who plays as a right-back for Fortuna Liga club Dunajská Streda and the Panama national team. Club career Blackman made his Fortuna Liga debut for ...
*
Roberto Brown Roberto Ronaldo Brown Perea (born July 15, 1977) is a Panamanian former professional footballer who played as a forward. He was appointed assistant manager of sports of the Municipality of Panama in May 2014. Club career Nicknamed ''el Bombar ...
*
Omar Browne Omar Ezequiel Browne Zúñiga (born 3 May 1994) is a Panamanian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Panamanian Football League club Tauro F.C. and the Panama national team. Club career Browne has played for several Liga Panam ...
*
Armando Cooper Armando Enrique Cooper Whitaker (born 26 November 1987) is a Panamanian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Israeli club Maccabi Petah Tikva and the Panama national team. Club career Cooper began his career in the youth rank ...
*
Harold Cummings Harold Oshkaly Cummings Segura (born 1 March 1992) is a Panamanian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Club Always Ready and the Panama national football team. Club career Árabe Unido In 2009, he signed for Liga Panameña ...
*
Ricardo Phillips Ricardo Oscar Phillips (born 31 January 1975) is a Panamanian former Association football, football midfielder. Club career A short-sized but speedy attacking midfielder, Phillips started his career at Euro Kickers F.C., Euro Kickers and joined ...
*
Carlos Harvey Carlos Miguel Harvey Cesneros (born 3 February 2000) is a Panamaian professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for USL Championship club Phoenix Rising FC and the Panama national team. Club career He joined LA Galaxy II on loan ...
* Víctor Griffith *
Ernesto Sinclair Ernesto Arturo Sinclair Chávez (born March 10, 1989) is a Panamanian footballer. Club career Sinclair moved to Chile with his parents when only 11 years, then played with Argentinian side EstudiantesErnesto Walker *
Jair Catuy Jair Ibrahim Catuy Arosemena (born 28 January 1992) is a Panamanian professional association football, footballer player who plays as a center forward for Unión Deportivo Universitario, CD Universitario and the Panama national football team, Pan ...
*
Alfredo Stephens Alfredo Horacio Stephens Francis (born 25 December 1994) is a Panamanian professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Ecuadorian Serie A club 9 de Octubre and the Panama national football team. Club career In summer 2014, S ...
*
Felipe Baloy Felipe Abdiel Baloy Ramírez (born 24 February 1981) is a Panamanian former professional footballer who played as a defender. He scored Panama’s first ever goal in a FIFA World Cup, against England at the 2018 edition. Early life He was the ...
*
Aramis Haywood Aramis Haywood (born 3 April 1985) is a Panamanian association football, football midfielder who currently plays for El Farolito Soccer Club in the National Premier Soccer League. Club career He played for several Panamanian club sides and joine ...
*
Jean McLean Jean Alberto McLean Marenco (born 16 January 1984) is a Panamanian professional association football, football midfielder playing in Panamá for Liga Nacional de Ascenso, Panamanian Second Division team SUNTRACS F.C., SUNTRACS. Club career He ...
* Iván Anderson *
Cecilio Waterman Cecilio Alfonso Waterman Ruiz (born 13 April 1991) is a Panamanian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Everton and the Panama national team. Club career Waterman made his professional debut playing with Sporting San Miguelito ...
*
José Córdoba José Ángel Córdoba Chambers (born 3 June 2001) is a Panamanian professional footballer who plays as a defender for Bulgarian club Levski Sofia. Club career Córdoba started in the youth ranks and began his professional football career at I ...
*
Roman Torres Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
* Eric Davis *
Blas Perez Basic Linear Algebra Subprograms (BLAS) is a specification that prescribes a set of low-level routines for performing common linear algebra operations such as vector addition, scalar multiplication, dot products, linear combinations, and matrix ...
* Ismael Diaz * Newton Williams *
Jesus West Jesus Andrés West Salazar (born 19 June 1999) is a Panamanian Association football, footballer currently playing as a Defender (association football), defender for Costa del Este F.C., Costa del Este. Career statistics Club ;Notes Referen ...
*
Ricardo Buitrago Ricardo Enrique Buitrago Medina (Panama City, ) is a Panamanian footballer who plays for Plaza Amador as a midfielder. Club career Buitrago began his career on hometown's club Plaza Amador, but later moved to Colombia, signing a contract with D ...
*
Renan Addles Renan is a name present in Portuguese language, Portuguese, Spanish language, Spanish, French language, French, Turkish language, Turkish and Breton language, Breton as an alternative form of Ronan. It may refer to: People Arts * Ary Renan (1857 ...
*
Ricardo James Ricardo Emir James Rayo (born May 7, 1966) is a Panamanian former footballer. Club career James played for local side Guabito de Bocas but never in the ANAPROF league, since he spent most of his career in Honduras playing for Platense and O ...
*
Luis Tejada Luis Carlos "Matador" Tejada Hansell (born 28 March 1982) is a Panamanian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Molinos El Pirata. Club career Tejada's debut in professional soccer was with Tauro in the local league, where he ma ...
*
Michael Amir Murillo Michael Amir Murillo Bermudez (born 11 February 1996) is a Panamanian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Defender (association football)#Full-back, right-back for Belgian First Division A, Belgian Pro League club R.S.C. ...
*
Ricardo Hinds Ricardo Antonio Phillips Hinds (born 6 May 2001) is a Panamanian professional association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder (association football), winger for Club Deportivo del Este, Deportivo del Este and the Panama national footb ...
* Roderick Miller *
Alberto Quintero Alberto Quintero (born in October 1970 in Palencia, Spain) is a Spanish composer, arranger, music producer, musical director and conductor. Biography Although most of his career has been focused on recording, he has recently focused on the w ...
*
Aníbal Godoy Anibal Casis Godoy Lemus (; born 10 February 1990) is a Panamanian professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Major League Soccer club Nashville SC and captains the Panama national team. Club career Godoy started his car ...
* Gabriel Gomez *
Aloe Blacc Egbert Nathaniel Dawkins III (born January 7, 1979), known professionally by his stage name Aloe Blacc (), is an American singer, songwriter and rapper. He is best known for his singles "I Need a Dollar", " The Man", which topped the charts in th ...
, American singer, record producer, philanthropist * Sech, Afro-Panamanian
reggaeton Reggaeton (, ), also known as reggaetón and reguetón (), is a music style that originated in Panama during the late 1980s. It was later popularized in Puerto Rico. It has evolved from dancehall and has been influenced by American Hip hop m ...
artist *
Princess Angela of Liechtenstein Princess Angela of Liechtenstein ( es, Ángela, born Angela Gisela Brown; February 3, 1958) is a Panamanian-American fashion designer and member of the Liechtenstein princely family.''Genealogisches Handbuch des Adels, Fürstliche Häuser'' XV ...
(
née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...
Angela Brown, born 1958 in Bocas del Toro), first person of known African origin to marry into a reigning European dynasty *
Melva Lowe de Goodin Melva Lowe de Goodin (born 1945) is an Afro-Panamanian academic and writer, whose work has focused on adding back the historical contributions of Panama's Afro-Caribbean people. Educated in the United States, she began her teaching career in Afric ...
, professor and historian at the
University of Panama The University of Panama ( es, Universidad de Panamá) was founded on October 7, 1935. Initially, it had 175 students learning education, commerce, natural sciences, pharmacy, pre-engineering or law. , it had 74,059 students distributed in 228 b ...
and
Florida State University-Panama Florida State University-Panama, or FSU-Panama is an international branch campus of Florida State University located on the isthmus of Panama. FSU has operating a broad curriculum program in Panama City of the Republic of Panama for over 50 years. ...
*
Eusebio Pedroza Eusebio Pedroza (March 2, 1956 – March 1, 2019) was a Panamanian boxer who held the WBA and lineal featherweight championship from 1978 to 1985, having defended the title against 18 different contenders, more than any other boxer in featherwe ...
, world boxing champion and member of the
International Boxing Hall of Fame The modern International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF), located in Canastota, New York, honors boxers, trainers and other contributors to the sport worldwide. Inductees are selected by members of the Boxing Writers Association of America. The I ...
*
El Chombo Rodney Sebastian Clark Donalds (born November 27, 1969), better known by his stage name El Chombo,In Panama, ''Chombo'' refers to a black person but is generally a derogatory term. is a Panamanian reggaeton artist and producer. He is best known f ...
, reggaeton artist and producer of Afro-Jamaican descent *
El General Edgardo Armando Franco (born 27 September 1969), better known as El General, is a Panamanian former reggae artist considered by some to be one of the fathers of "Reggae en Español". During the early 1990s, he was one of the artists who initiate ...
, reggae artist considered by some to be one of the fathers of "Reggae en Español", pioneering Reggaeton *
Roy Bryce-Laporte Roy Simon Bryce-Laporte (born Roy Laporte; September 7, 1933 in Panama City – July 30, 2012 in Sykesville, Maryland) was a sociologist who established one of the first African-American studies departments.Douglas Martin"Roy S. Bryce-Laporte, ...
, Panamanian-American scholar *
Tatyana Ali Tatyana Marisol Ali is an American actress and singer best known for her role as Ashley Banks on the NBC sitcom ''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'' from 1990 to 1996. She starred as Tyana Jones on the TV One original series ''Love That Girl!'', an ...
, American actress of partial Panamanian heritage *
Rolando Blackman Rolando Antonio Blackman (born February 26, 1959) is a Panamanian-American former professional basketball player. He was a four-time NBA All-Star who spent most of his career with the Dallas Mavericks. Blackman was born in Panama City, Panama, ...
, former
NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...
basketball player *
Donovan Mitchell Donovan Mitchell Jr. (born September 7, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "Spida", he was drafted in the first round of the 2017 NBA draft w ...
, NBA All-Star *
DJ Clue Ernesto Shaw (born January 8, 1975), better known as DJ Clue, is an American disc jockey (DJ), record producer, radio personality and record executive. Early life DJ Clue was born in Queens, New York City to Panamanian and Jamaican immigran ...
, American hip-hop DJ *
Bobby Lashley Franklin Roberto Lashley (born July 16, 1976) is an American professional wrestler, mixed martial artist and bodybuilder. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand. He is an eight-time world champion, having been a two-t ...
, professional wrestler and mixed martial artist *
Panama Al Brown Alfonso Teofilo Brown (July 5, 1902 – April 11, 1951), better known as Panama Al Brown, was a Panamanian professional boxer. He made history by becoming boxing's first Latin American world champion, and is widely regarded as one of the greatest ...
, boxing's fist Latin-American champion *
Roberto Wallace Roberto Wallace (born May 10, 1986) is a Panamanian born, former American football wide receiver. He played college football at San Diego State. College career Wallace started attending San Diego State University in 2005. He red-shirted his f ...
, professional American football player * Kevin Daley, professional basketball player *
DJ Clark Kent Rodolfo Franklin Sr. (born September 28, 1967), known professionally as Clark Kent or DJ Clark Kent, is an American hip hop record producer, DJ and music executive of Panamanian descent. His crew of DJs is called "The Supermen", and his DJ moni ...
, American hip-hop DJ * Gloria Karamañites,
Miss Panamá Miss (pronounced ) is an English language honorific typically used for a girl, for an unmarried woman (when not using another title such as "Doctor" or "Dame"), or for a married woman retaining her maiden name. Originating in the 17th century, it ...
1980 *
Ed Cota Eduardo Enrique Cota (born May 19, 1976) is a Panamanian-American former professional basketball player. High school career Cota played his freshman and sophomore years at Brooklyn, New York's Samuel J. Tilden High School. As a sophomore, he ...
, professional basketball player * Pop Smoke, American rapper of Afro-Panamanian descent *
Casanova (rapper) Caswell Senior (born October 27, 1986), known professionally as Casanova, is an American rapper. In 2016, Casanova made his first original song "Don't Run". He is signed to Roc Nation. In 2020, he was indicted on RICO charges alongside 17 others ...
, American rapper of Afro-Panamanian descent *
Carlos Lee Carlos Noriel Lee (born June 20, 1976), nicknamed "El Caballo", is a Panamanian former professional baseball first baseman and left fielder who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1999–2012 with the Chicago White Sox, Milwaukee Brewers, ...
, former Major League Baseball All-Star *
Karl Kani Karl Kani (; born Carl Williams on May 23, 1968 in Limon, Costa Rica) is an American fashion designer, founder and CEO of the hip hop fashion brand Karl Kani. He comes from a modest family from Brooklyn, New York. When he was young, he dreame ...
, American fashion designer *
Gary Forbes Gary Orlando Forbes (born February 25, 1985) is a Panamanian former professional basketball player for the Saigon Heat of the ASEAN Basketball League. He played college basketball initially at the University of Virginia, then transferred to the Un ...
, professional basketball player *
Bayano Bayano, also known as Ballano or Vaino, was an African enslaved by Spaniards who led the biggest slave revolts of 16th century Panama. Captured from the Yoruba community in West Africa, it has been argued that his name means ''idol''. Different ...
, rebel slave *
Tessa Thompson Tessa Lynne Thompson (born October 3, 1983) is an American actress. She began her professional acting career with the Los Angeles Women's Shakespeare Company while studying at Santa Monica College. She appeared in productions of '' The Tempest ...
, American actress *
Roberto Kelly Roberto Conrado "Gray" Kelly (born October 1, 1964) is a Panamanian baseball manager and former professional baseball outfielder in Major League Baseball. He was signed by the New York Yankees as an amateur free agent in 1982 and went on to play ...
, MLB All-Star and coach *
Rod Carew Rodney Cline Carew (born October 1, 1945) is a Panamanian former professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a first baseman, second baseman and designated hitter from 1967 to 1985 for the Minnesota Twins ...
, Major League Baseball Hall of Famer *
Mariano Rivera Mariano Rivera (born November 29, 1969) is a Panamanian-American former professional baseball pitcher who played 19 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees, from 1995 to 2013. Nicknamed "Mo" and "Sandman", he spent most ...
, Major League Baseball Hall of Famer *
Uncle Murda Leonard Grant (born July 25, 1980), better known by his stage name Uncle Murda, is an American rapper from East New York, Brooklyn. He is Afro Panamanian of his mother's side. He is currently signed to G-Unit Records. He is known for his annual ...
, American rapper of Afro-Panamanian descent *
Tyson Beckford Tyson Beckford (born December 19, 1970) is an American model and actor best known as a Ralph Lauren Polo model. He was also the host of both seasons of the Bravo program '' Make Me a Supermodel''. Beckford has been described as one of the most ...
, American model and actor *Brenda Smith (model), Brenda Smith, Afro-Panamanian/Mexican model and beauty queen who was crowned Senorita Panama 2021 and placed Top 16 at Miss Universe 2021. *Gwen Ifill, Gwendolyn Ifill, Journalist, television newscaster, and author. Hosted a nationally televised U.S. public affairs program called Washington Week in Review. Co-anchor and co-managing editor of the PBS NewsHour. Moderated the 2004 and 2008 U. S. vice-presidential debates. Authored the best-selling book “The Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama”.


See also

* Xenophobia#Panama


References

{{Ethnic Groups in Panama Afro-Panamanian, Ethnic groups in Panama Panamanian people of African descent, People of African descent, Panamanian