Darién (,
;
) is a
province in Panama whose capital city is
La Palma
La Palma (, ), also known as ''La isla bonita'' () and historically San Miguel de La Palma, is the most northwesterly island of the Canary Islands, a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in Macaronesia in the North Atlantic Ocean. La Pa ...
. With an area of , it is located at the eastern end of the country and bordered to the north by the province of
Panamá and the region of
Kuna Yala. To the south, it is bordered by the
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...
and Colombia. To the east, it borders
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...
; to the west, it borders the Pacific Ocean and the province of Panama.
The area surrounding the border with Colombia is known as the
Darién Gap
The Darién Gap (, , ) is a geographic region that connects the Americas, American continents, stretching across southern Panama's Darién Province and the northern portion of Colombia's Chocó Department. Consisting of a large drainage basin, ...
, a large swath of undeveloped swampland and forest. With no roads, it is the missing link of the
Pan-American Highway
The Pan-American Highway is a vast network of roads that stretches about 30,000 kilometers (about 19,000 miles) from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, in the northernmost part of North America to Ushuaia, Argentina, at the southern tip of South America. I ...
.
Place names
The name originates from the
language
Language is a structured system of communication that consists of grammar and vocabulary. It is the primary means by which humans convey meaning, both in spoken and signed language, signed forms, and may also be conveyed through writing syste ...
spoken by the
Cueva,
an Indigenous tribe destroyed by the European
conquistador
Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (; ; ) were Spanish Empire, Spanish and Portuguese Empire, Portuguese colonizers who explored, traded with and colonized parts of the Americas, Africa, Oceania and Asia during the Age of Discovery. Sailing ...
s during the 16th century. The Tanela River, which flows toward
Atrato, was Hispanicized to Darién; the region and its communities took the same name.
Santa María la Antigua del Darién
Santa María la Antigua del Darién—turned into Dariena in the Latin of De Orbo Novo—was a Spanish colonial town founded in 1510 by Vasco Núñez de Balboa, located in present-day Colombia approximately south of Acandí, within the muni ...
, the first city founded in
Tierra Firme, also took its name from the river. Subsequently, the region's boundaries were defined by the
Gulf of Urabá
The Gulf of Urabá is a gulf on the northern coast of Colombia. It is part of the Caribbean Sea. It is a long, wide inlet located on the coast of Colombia, close to the connection of the continent to the Isthmus of Panama. The town of Turbo, Co ...
.
History
Darién Province has been inhabited by indigenous people for thousands of years. Evidence based on soil erosion suggests
slash-and-burn
Slash-and-burn agriculture is a form of shifting cultivation that involves the cutting and burning of plants in a forest or woodland to create a Field (agriculture), field called a swidden. The method begins by cutting down the trees and woody p ...
agriculture at the latest 4000 years ago. Disappearance of
paleobotanical evidence of this culture coincides with the
arrival of European colonists, which likely decimated this population.
In 1508, the
Spanish Crown
The monarchy of Spain or Spanish monarchy () is the constitutional form of government of Spain. It consists of a Hereditary monarchy, hereditary monarch who reigns as the head of state, being the highest office of the country.
The Spanish ...
decided to colonize the mainland, the chosen area extending from
Cabo Gracias a Dios
Cabo Gracias a Dios is a cape located in the middle of the east coast of Central America, within what is variously called the Mosquito Coast and La Mosquitia. It is the point where the Rio Coco flows into the Caribbean, and is the border betwe ...
in western Central America (in the present boundary between Nicaragua and Honduras) to
Cabo de la Vela
Cabo de la Vela (Spanish for "cape of sail") is a headland in the Guajira Peninsula in Colombia with an adjacent small fishing village. It is a popular ecotourism destination of the Caribbean region of Colombia.
History
Spanish explorer Juan ...
, Venezuela in the east. The provinces on the mainland were
Nueva Andalucía, between the
Atrato River
The Atrato River () is a river of northwestern Colombia. It rises in the slopes of the Western Cordillera and flows almost due north to the Gulf of Urabá (or Gulf of Darién), where it forms a large, swampy delta. Its course crosses the Ch ...
in the Gulf of Uraba and the Cabo de la Vela in Venezuela and
Castilla del Oro (or
Veragua), which stretched from the Atrato River to Cabo Gracias a Dios in Central America.
The Governor of Nueva Andalucía was
Alonso de Ojeda
Alonso de Ojeda (; c. 1466 – c. 1515) was a Spanish explorer, governor and conquistador. He is famous for having named Venezuela, which he explored during his first two expeditions, for having been the first European to visit Guyana, Curaçao ...
and the mayor of Castilla del Oro was
Diego de Nicuesa
Diego de Nicuesa (; died 1511) was a Spanish conquistador and explorer. He was the first governor of Veragua, a region stretching from Panama to northern Nicaragua, during the Spanish colonial period.
Background
Diego arrived Santo Domingo in Apr ...
, who became the first governor of the Isthmus of Panama. Diego de Nicuesa founded
Nombre de Dios in 1510.
Martín Fernández de Enciso
Martín Fernández de Enciso ( 1470 – 1528) was a Spanish lawyer, colonial official and geographer. He was instrumental in the colonization of the Isthmus of Darien, one of Spain's earliest attempts to occupy the mainland of the Americas. His ...
founded Santa Maria la Antigua del Darién, west of the Gulf of Urabá, in September 1510 on the advice of
Vasco Núñez de Balboa
Vasco Núñez de Balboa (; c. 1475around January 12–21, 1519) was a Spanish people, Spanish explorer, governor, and conquistador. He is best known for crossing the Isthmus of Panama to the Pacific Ocean in 1513, becoming the first European to ...
, who had arrived at those lands earlier with
Rodrigo de Bastidas
Rodrigo de Bastidas (; Triana, Seville, Andalusia, Santiago de Cuba, Cuba, 28 July 1527) was a Spanish conquistador and explorer who mapped the northern coast of South America, discovered Panama, and founded the city of Santa Marta.
Personal li ...
.
On September 1, 1513, Balboa went in search of the South Sea with 190 Spaniards and 1,000 Indigenous people. He sighted the sea on September 25, 1513, and claimed it for the Spanish Crown on September 29 in the
Gulf of San Miguel.
During the late 17th century there was a
Scottish colonization project in the
Isthmus of Panama
The Isthmus of Panama, historically known as the Isthmus of Darien, is the narrow strip of land that lies between the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, linking North America, North and South America. The country of Panama is located on the i ...
(specifically in Darién), from which
William Paterson emerged as the center of the unsuccessful attempt. The attempt to colonize by the
Company of Scotland, which traded with Africa and the Indies, was part of the conflict between Spain and other 16th-century European powers in reaction to the 1494
Treaty of Tordesillas
The Treaty of Tordesillas, signed in Tordesillas, Spain, on 7 June 1494, and ratified in Setúbal, Portugal, divided the newly discovered lands outside Europe between the Kingdom of Portugal and the Crown of Castile, along a meridian (geography) ...
.
On July 14, 1698 Paterson left with an expedition of about 1,200 on five ships (''Saint Andrew'', ''Caledonia'', ''Unicorn'', ''Dolphin'' and ''Endeavour'') from
Leith
Leith (; ) is a port area in the north of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith and is home to the Port of Leith.
The earliest surviving historical references are in the royal charter authorising the construction of ...
, Scotland. The expedition landed October 30, 1698 in Anachucuna, a sandy bay in the north of Darien near Golden Island. It forged a "treaty of alliance and friendship" with an Indigenous leader, and founded in
Acla a colony known as New Caledonia.
Paterson and his expedition withstood a Spanish force which attempted to confront them. However, diseases related to the climate and unsanitary conditions soon decimated the expedition. In June 1699 the Scots were forced to leave New Caledonia, despite protests from Paterson, and retreated to Jamaica.
A second expedition left Scotland on September 24, 1699 from
Rothesay on the
Firth of Clyde
The Firth of Clyde, is the estuary of the River Clyde, on the west coast of Scotland. The Firth has some of the deepest coastal waters of the British Isles. The Firth is sheltered from the Atlantic Ocean by the Kintyre, Kintyre Peninsula. The ...
with four ships: the ''Rising Sun'', ''Hamilton'', ''Hope of Boroughstonness'' and ''Company's Hope''. Paterson had a total crew of 1,300 men. On November 30, 1699 they arrived safely at the port of Caledonia, but met greater resistance from Spanish forces; they were besieged, outnumbered and without external support. On March 28, 1700, they requested that the Spanish commander set conditions for surrender.
Government and politics
The Constitution of Panama of 1972, amended by the Reform Acts of 1978 and the Constitutional Act of 1983, has a unitary, republican, democratic and representative government. Three branches of government exist in all provinces of the Republic of Panama.
Administrative divisions

Darién Province is divided into three districts and 26 ''
corregimientos''.
The ''comarca indígena'' of
Kuna de Wargandí, established in 2000, lies within Pinogana District and constitutes a separate ''corregimiento''.
Other subdivisions formerly part of Darién
The ''
comarca indígena'' (indigenous territory) of
Emberá-Wounaan was established from the province on November 8, 1983. It consists of two districts:
*
Cémaco
*
Sambú
Geography

Darién Province covers an area of , comparable to the island of
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...
. It is the largest province by area, but also the smallest in population. In the centre is an undulating plain, fed by the rivers
Chucunaque and
Tuira and framed by steep areas of the highlands of San Blas, Bagre, Pirre, and the Saltos. Among the highest mountains in the province are Tacarcuna at , Piña at , Pirre at , Nique at , Chucantí at , Tanela at and Upper Quia at .
Eight percent of the province's land is suitable for intensive cultivation, 60 percent is suitable for pasture, permanent crops and forestry production and 25 percent is protected forest reserves. The dominant natural vegetation is forests which, according to the topographic elevation and rainfall patterns, are classified as
tropical moist, subtropical moist and
cloud forest
A cloud forest, also called a water forest, primas forest, or tropical montane cloud forest, is a generally tropical or subtropical, evergreen, Montane forest, montane, Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, moist forest characteri ...
.
Climate
Rainfall reaches near the inlet of
Garachiné
Garachiné is a Corregimientos of Panama, corregimiento in Chepigana District, Darién Province, Panama with a population of 1,878 as of 2010. Its population as of 1990 was 1,800; its population as of 2000 was 1,944.
Transportation
The village ...
, with a marked dry period between January and April (a
tropical savanna climate
Tropical savanna climate or tropical wet and dry climate is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification categories ''Aw'' (for a dry "winter") and ''As'' (for a dry "summer"). The driest month has less than ...
, ''Aw'' on the
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...
). However, in the foothills and valleys of the province's interior precipitation can exceed per year with virtually no dry season (a
tropical rainforest climate
A tropical rainforest climate or equatorial climate is a tropical climate sub-type usually found within 10 to 15 degrees latitude of the equator. There are some other areas at higher latitudes, such as the coast of southeast Florida, United States ...
, Köppen ''Af''); this ranks the area among the rainiest regions on earth. The temperature varies, by altitude, between . The soil types and their suitability for use are primarily associated with topographic variations and geological-material generators.
Hydrology
In Darién Province watersheds form extensive sedimentary waterways, pouring their waters into rivers such as the Rio Chucunaque and the 230-km Tuira (the longest, most treacherous rivers in Panama). The hydrographic system in the province shows a minimum flow in March and April and a maximum in November.
The use of water resources is largely limited to the provision of potable water to 15 towns. The lack of detailed information on topography and
hydrometeorology
Hydrometeorology is a branch of meteorology and hydrology that studies the transfer of water and energy between the land surface and the lower atmosphere for academic research, commercial gain or operational forecasting purposes.
Whilst tradition ...
makes it difficult to estimate
hydropower
Hydropower (from Ancient Greek -, "water"), also known as water power or water energy, is the use of falling or fast-running water to Electricity generation, produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by energy transformation, ...
potential, but possible candidates are the Pirre, Antad, Tuira, Chico and Yape Rivers.
Demographics
The province's population is small, dispersed and heterogeneous, located in small towns linked to waterways. Significant migration flows to and from the province have been recorded.
In 1970 the population totaled 22,685, primarily
mulatto
( , ) is a Race (human categorization), racial classification that refers to people of mixed Sub-Saharan African, African and Ethnic groups in Europe, European ancestry only. When speaking or writing about a singular woman in English, the ...
es, black people,
indigenous Colombian Chocoanos and settlers from other areas of Panama. Approximately 60 percent of the population is located in 523 towns of less than 500 inhabitants each.
In 2000 the Census of Population and Housing indicated that the May population of Darién was 40,284 inhabitants living in 11,514 dwellings in 613 towns.
Preliminary data from the XI National Census of Population and Housing VI show that as of May 16, 2010 Darién has a population of 46,951 inhabitants, of which 25,764 are men and 21,187 women. There were a total of 15,310 homes. At the 2023 census 54,235 people were counted.
Culture
The population is primarily indigenous,
Afro-Descendants, and settlers who migrated from other provinces (mainly
Santeña,
Herrerano and
Veraguas
Veraguas () is a province of Panama, located in the centre-west of the country. The capital is the city of Santiago de Veraguas. It is the only Panamanian province to border both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. It covers an area of 10,587.6&n ...
) in search of land and opportunity.
The characteristic music of the people of Darién is the ''
bullerengue'', a drum dance from Africa.
Groups who have migrated to the province are trying to preserve their customs and traditions which are distinct from Colombian culture.
Radio stations play ''bullerengue''; stations nearer the Colombian border favor ''
vallenato
Vallenato () is a popular folk music genre from Colombia. It primarily comes from its Caribbean region. ''Vallenato'' literally means "born in the valley". The valley influencing this name is located between the ''Sierra Nevada de Santa Mar ...
'' music.
Common foods include ''guacho de mariscos'' (fish with coconut rice) and ''serendengue''. ''Choca'o'' (stewed plantain) is a traditional drink.
Women usually wear hand-sewn dresses, while men dress for business. Primary crops grown in the province are maize, rice, plantains, bananas, cassava, yams and beans. In the Gulf of San Miguel shrimp, fish and lobster are abundant; a fishing fleet operates from
Panama City
Panama City, also known as Panama, is the capital and largest city of Panama. It has a total population of 1,086,990, with over 2,100,000 in its metropolitan area. The city is located at the Pacific Ocean, Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, i ...
. In the inland rivers of the province, fishing is mainly for sustenance. The lumber industry yields valuable woods such as cedar,
balsa, balsam, mahogany and
cocobolo.
Videos
* Tierra Adentro (Inland) a film documentary by Mauro Colombo. At the dangerous border between these two countries, guerrillas, immigrants, indigenous people, farmers, drug traffickers, local police, and wild animals cross paths. (presented at Rotterdam international Film Festival in 2019).
Citations
General and cited references
* Alì, Maurizio. (2012).
Megaproyectos y efectos perversos de la modernidad: el bizarro caso de Uraba. Revista Perfiles Libertadores, 8: 72–80. Bogotá, Colombia. Fundación Universitaria Los Libertadores.
* ''Panama in Figures: 2000–2004'' Statistics and Census of the Comptroller General of the Republic of Panama.
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Darien Province
Provinces of Panama