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El Quibían, or Quibían, was an indigenous king who ruled lands in the river basins of Quiebra and Yebra, now called Rio Belén, on the Caribbean coast of the present day
Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...
, who was visited by
Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...
on his fourth voyage, in early 1503.


Title or name

He is mentioned in documents of Columbus' voyage with the name "El Quibían" or Quibían. As he is always identified with the prefix article, it is very possible that the word Quibían identifies a title, namely that of chief among the Ngöbe peoples. It is widely suggested by historians like Joaquin Gonzalez that this means el Quibían was, in fact,
Urracá Urracá or Ubarragá Maniá Tigrí (died 1531) was an Ngobe, Ngäbe Amerindian chieftain or cacique in the region of present-day Panama who fought effectively against the Spanish conquistadors. The Spaniards captured Urracá when he met them to d ...
, a Ngöbe cacique who successfully united a number of tribes to defend his people in present-day
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 ...
against the
conquistadors 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 ...
, starting in 1519. Gonzalez suggests it because of the similar descriptions of the two leaders, their ability to organize neighboring tribes, and their ability to defeat the Spanish. Other historians, including Cedeño Cenci, reject the idea. The idea may seem far-fetched but their attributes were almost identical.


Fourth voyage of Columbus during the reign of Quibían

The Columbian expedition reached Quibían's domains on January 6, 1503, and due to that arrival date, day of the
Epiphany Epiphany may refer to: Psychology * Epiphany (feeling), an experience of sudden and striking insight Religion * Epiphany (holiday), a Christian holiday celebrating the revelation of God the Son as a human being in Jesus Christ ** Epiphany seaso ...
, Christopher Columbus gave the name of Rio Belén, meaning Bethlehem, to what the indigenous people called Yebra river. The admiral entrusted his brother,
Bartholomew Columbus Bartholomew Columbus (; ; ; ; – 12 August 1514) was a Genoese explorer and the younger brother of Christopher Columbus. Biography Born in Genoa in the 1461, Bartholomew became a mapmaker in Lisbon, the principal center of cartography of the ...
, to explore around the country, which resulted in an alliance with the Ngöbe under Quibían, who paid a visit to Columbus' ships. Columbus decided to found a settlement near the mouth of the river, including several houses made of
palm Palm most commonly refers to: * Palm of the hand, the central region of the front of the hand * Palm plants, of family Arecaceae ** List of Arecaceae genera **Palm oil * Several other plants known as "palm" Palm or Palms may also refer to: Music ...
trees to leave provisions and people. The settlement was given the name Santa María de Belén and was to be headed by Don Bartholomew with 80 men, while Columbus returned to
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
in search of reinforcements to continue the subjugation of the area to mine its resources. However, Quibían, who was suspicious of the Columbus brothers, told them not to go past a certain point in the river. When they did, he began secretly planning with several indigenous nations to destroy the settlement and expel the foreigners. Aware of these plans, Bartholomew Columbus captured the king, his family and friends, who he led tied up to Santa María. El Quibían tricked them into throwing him from the boat, into the river, and the Spanish assumed that since he was tied up, he would drown. The Spanish ships left the river and anchored a short distance from the coast, but while Bartholomew was on board to receive instructions from Christopher Columbus, el Quibían, who had managed to escape and gather some of the neighboring nations, attacked Santa María. There was a battle, in which Bartholomew Columbus was wounded, and el Quibían defeated the Spanish. Finally, the Spanish had to abandon their settlement and flee. On the ships, some of the relatives and friends of el Quibían tried to flee, but those who did not make it were hanged in the hold of the ship where they had been held. {{DEFAULTSORT:Quibian, El Christopher Columbus 16th-century indigenous leaders of the Americas Panamanian people of Indigenous peoples descent