Panama is the country that connected two oceans and, in doing so, changed the geometry of world trade. The canal is the fact that every conversation about Panama begins with — 77 kilometers of waterway through the Isthmus, connecting the Pacific and Atlantic, opened in 1914 after a decade of construction under American direction following a French failure. About 14,000 ships pass through annually. But Panama is also the country that took the canal back in 1999 — and that has been expanding it and running it with extraordinary efficiency ever since. The canal is not just Panama's history; it is Panama's present.
What is Panama known for?
Panama is a Central American nation of approximately 4.5 million people, known internationally for the Panama Canal, its role as a banking and trade hub (Panama City is one of Latin America's major financial centers), and its extraordinary biodiversity. The country contains more bird species than the entire continental United States, more plant species per square kilometer than virtually anywhere on Earth, and is home to the Darién Gap — one of the world's last roadless wilderness areas. Panama's culture blends Indigenous heritage (Kuna/Guna, Emberá, and other peoples), Spanish colonial history, Afro-Panamanian traditions (particularly in music — reggae en español and other Afro-Caribbean forms originated partly in Panama), and significant influences from the canal construction era's diverse migrant workforce. Rubén Blades, one of the most important figures in Latin American music and culture, is Panamanian.
Panamanian-American identity
The Panamanian-American community is relatively smaller than many Latino national groups, concentrated in New York, Miami, and Los Angeles. Panamanians in the United States often navigate an identity that is both Caribbean and Central American — the country's geography and history put it at a crossroads of cultures. Panamanian pride is specific: the canal, the music, the mola textile art of the Guna people, the specific food (sancocho, arroz con pollo, ceviche). It is a small country with an outsized mark on the world, and the people who come from it carry that knowledge. Smile Mas makes pieces for communities that name their country specifically and with pride.
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