Colón Province

Colón (Spanish pronunciation: [koˈlon]) is a province of Panama. The capital is the city of Colón. It covers an area of 4,575.5 sq.km, and the latest estimate of population (for 2019) is 294,060.[3]

Colón Province Provincia de Colón
Province
Flag Coat of arms
Location of Colón Province in Panama
Coordinates: 9°10′N 80°10′W
Country	Panama
Founded	1855
Capital city	Colón
Area
• Total	4,575.5 km^2 (1,766.6 sq mi)
Population  (2019)
• Total	294,060
• Density	64/km^2 (170/sq mi)
	official estimate[1]
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern Time)
ISO 3166 code	PA-3
HDI (2017)	0.799[2] high

Overview

This province has traditionally been focused on commerce (through the Colón Free Zone, Panama Canal, and its banking activities), but also has natural resources that are being developed as a tourist attraction, such as coral reefs and rainforests. During the Spanish colonial period, the Colon region of Panama was the center of trade, commerce, and overall economy for the Spanish. They imported many black African slaves to this area to work in Panama and to ship to other Spaniard colonies.

Most of the black population in Panama is centered in the Province of Colon. Panama has two distinct groups of black people. The first and earliest black people were those who came as slaves as early as the fifteenth century, through much of the nineteenth century. They are of mixed African and Spanish descent. This group is known as Cimarrones, Afro Colonials, Nativos, Playeros, Congos. These terms have proven crucial in establishing that these are the first and original black people of the Republic of Panama. Afro Colonials have held on to their culture and adopted Hispanic customs, traits, and cultures. They took and assumed Spanish names and surnames. They also developed the beginning of Panama's black population and culture, in pure and mixed forms. They have been incorporated into Panamanian and Spanish-speaking society, as a result.

In the nineteenth century, beginning as early as the 1840s, black people from the Caribbean and West Indies immigrated to Panama to assist to build the Panama Railway and the Panama Canal. Later many black people from all over the Caribbean and West Indies, especially from Jamaica and Barbados, settled here between the years of 1880 and 1920 to build the Panama Canal. Many later settled in the Colon Province. This group of Caribbean and/or West Indian origin are called Afro Antillanos by the Hispanic Panamanians. They have assimilated to the Hispanic culture and Panama as well as holding on to aspects of their descent and culture. They have influenced the cuisine and music of Panama. Most importantly, their influence on music, especially from those of Jamaican descent invented and created Reggae en Español.

Administrative divisions

Since the creation of Omar Torrijos Herrera District in 2018, Colón Province is divided into six districts (distritos) which are subdivided into 42 corregimientos.

District	Area (km^2)	Population Estimate 2010[4]	Population Estimate 2019[5]	Notes
Chagres	445	10,282	11,342
Colón	1,180	218,604	253,366	Contains city of Colón
Donoso	1,627	13,165	14,798	Western part of Province
Omar Torrijos Herrera	199	–	–	Formerly part of Donoso
Portobelo	397	9,382	10,581
Santa Isabel	727	3,530	3,973	Eastern part of Province

District	Corregimientos (Subdivisions)	Cabecera (Seat)
Colón District	Barrio Norte^1, Barrio Sur^1, Buena Vista, Cativá, Ciricito, Sabanitas, Salamanca, Limón, Nueva Providencia, Puerto Pilón, Cristóbal, Escobal, San Juan, Santa Rosa	Colón City
Chagres District	Nuevo Chagres, Achiote, El Guabo, La Encantada, Palmas Bellas, Piña, Salud	Nuevo Chagres
Donoso District	Miguel de la Borda, Coclé del Norte, El Guásimo, Gobea, Río Indio	Miguel de la Borda
Omar Torrijos Herrera District	San José del General, Nueva Esperanza, San Juan de Turbe	San José del General
Portobelo District	San Felipe de Portobelo, Cacique, Garrote, Isla Grande, María Chiquita	San Felipe de Portobelo
Santa Isabel District	Palenque, Cuango, Miramar, Nombre de Dios, Palmira, Playa Chiquita, Santa Isabel, Viento Frío	Palenque

¹ - These corregimientos make up Colón City.

References

1. Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censo, Panama.
2. "Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab". hdi.globaldatalab.org. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
3. Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censo, Panama.
4. As of 1 July 2010; adjusted for under-enumeration in 2010 Census. Source: National Institute of Statistics and Census of Panama.
5. National Institute of Statistics and Census of Panama.