This article is about the national capital city of Panama. For the U.S.

city of the
same name, see Panama City, Florida.
Coordinates: 8°59′N 79°31′W

Panama City
Ciudad de Panamá
City
Nuestra Señora de la Asunción de Panamá
Top to bottom, left to right: Panama Canal, Skyline, Bridge of the Americas, The
bovedas, Casco Viejo of Panama (spanish for “old quarter”) and Metropolitan
Cathedral of Panama.
Top to bottom, left to right: Panama Canal, Skyline, Bridge of the Americas, The
bovedas, Casco Viejo of Panama (spanish for “old quarter”) and Metropolitan
Cathedral of Panama.
Flag of Panama City
Flag Coat of arms of Panama City
Coat of arms
Panama City is located in PanamaPanama CityPanama City
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Coordinates: Country 8°59′N 79°31′W
Country Panama
Province Panamá Province
District Panamá District
Foundation August 15, 1519
Founded by Pedro Arias de Ávila
Government
• Mayor José Luis Fábrega (PRD)
Area
• City 275 km2 (106 sq mi)
• Metro 2,560.8 km2 (988.7 sq mi)
Elevation 2 m (7 ft)
Population (2013)
• City 880,691
• Density 3,203/km2 (7,656/sq mi)
• Urban 430,299
[1]
Area code(s) (+507) 2, 3
HDI (2017) 0.820 – very high[2]
Website MuPa.gob.pa
Panama City (Spanish: Ciudad de Panamá; pronounced [sjuˈða(ð) ðe panaˈma]), also
simply known as Panama, is the capital and largest city of Panama.[3][4] It has an
urban population of 880,691,[1] with over 1.5 million in its metropolitan area. The
city is located at the Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, in the province of
Panama. The city is the political and administrative center of the country, as well
as a hub for banking and commerce.[5]

The city of Panama was founded on August 15, 1519, by Spanish conquistador Pedro
Arias Dávila. The city was the starting point for expeditions that conquered the
Inca Empire in Peru. It was a stopover point on one of the most important trade
routes in the American continent, leading to the fairs of Nombre de Dios and
Portobelo, through which passed most of the gold and silver that Spain took from
the Americas.

On January 28, 1671, the original city was destroyed by a fire when privateer Henry
Morgan sacked and set fire to it. The city was formally reestablished two years
later on January 21, 1673, on a peninsula located 8 km (5 miles) from the original
settlement. The site of the previously devastated city is still in ruins, and is
now a popular tourist attraction, and is regularly visited by school trips.

Contents
1 History
2 Geography
2.1 Climate
3 Cityscape
3.1 Architecture
3.2 Neighborhoods
4 Economy
5 Demographics
6 Culture
6.1 World Heritage Sites
6.1.1 Panamá Viejo
6.1.2 Casco Viejo or Casco Antiguo
6.2 Literature
6.3 Art
6.4 Tourism
7 Sports
8 Education
9 Healthcare
10 Transportation
11 International relations
11.1 Union of Ibero-American Capital Cities
12 Gallery
13 See also
14 References
14.1 Footnotes
14.2 Bibliography
15 External links
History

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See also: Timeline of Panama City

The Old Quarter of Panama City in the 19th century

The city was founded on August 15, 1519, by Pedro Arias de Ávila, also known as
Pedrarias Dávila. Within a few years of its founding, the city became a launching
point for the exploration and conquest of Peru and a transit point for gold and
silver headed back to Spain through the Isthmus. In 1671 Henry Morgan with a band
of 1400 men attacked and looted the city, which was subsequently destroyed by fire.
The ruins of the old city still remain and are a popular tourist attraction known
as Panamá Viejo (Old Panama). The city was rebuilt in 1673 in a new location
approximately 5 miles (8 km) southwest of the original city. This location is now
known as the Casco Viejo (Old Quarter) of the city.

One year before the start of the California Gold Rush, the Panama Railroad Company
was formed, but the railroad did not begin full operation until 1855. Between 1848
and 1869, the year the first transcontinental railroad was completed in the United
States, about 375,000 persons crossed the isthmus from the Atlantic to the Pacific,
and 225,000 in the opposite direction. This traffic greatly increased the
prosperity of the city during that period.

The construction of the Panama Canal was of great benefit to the infrastructure and
economy. Of particular note are the improvements in health and sanitation brought
about by the American presence in the Canal Zone. Dr. William Gorgas, the chief
sanitary officer for the canal construction, had a particularly large impact. He
hypothesized that diseases were spread by the abundance of mosquitos native to the
area, and ordered the fumigation of homes and the cleansing of water. This led to
yellow fever being eradicated by November 1905, as well malaria rates falling
dramatically.[6] However, most of the laborers for the construction of the canal
were brought in from the Caribbean, which created unprecedented racial and social
tensions in the city.

During World War II, construction of military bases and the presence of larger
numbers of U.S. military and civilian personnel brought about unprecedented levels
of prosperity to the city. Panamanians had limited access, or no access at all, to
many areas in the Canal Zone neighboring the Panama city metropolitan area. Some of
these areas were military bases accessible only to United States personnel. Some
tensions arose between the people of Panama and the U.S. citizens living in the
Panama Canal Zone. This erupted in the January 9, 1964 events, known as Martyrs'
Day.

In the late 1970s through the 1980s the city of Panama became an international
banking center, bringing a lot of undesirable attention as an international money-
laundering locale. In 1989 after nearly a year of tension between the United States
and Panama, President George H. W. Bush ordered the invasion of Panama to depose
General Manuel Noriega, the country's de facto dictator. As a result, a portion of
the El Chorrillo neighborhood, which consisted mostly of old wood-framed buildings
dating back to the 1900s (though still a large slum area), was destroyed by fire.
In 1999, the United States officially transferred control of the Panama Canal Zone
to Panama, which remains in control today.[6]

The city of Panama is still a banking center, although with very visible controls
in the flow of cash. Shipping is handled through port facilities in the area of
Balboa operated by the Hutchison Whampoa Company of Hong Kong and through several
ports on the Caribbean side of the isthmus. Balboa, which is located within the
greater Panama metropolitan area, was formerly part of the Panama Canal Zone, and
the administration of the former Panama Canal Zone was headquartered there.

The Panama Canal is one of the main attractions to the Panama City area. The
Centennial Bridge spans the area near Gold Hill on the left and Contractor Hill on
the right. This is the site of the highest elevation of the Panama Canal
construction.
Geography
Panamá is located between the Pacific Ocean and tropical rain forest in the
northern part of Panama. The Parque Natural Metropolitano (Metropolitan Nature
Park), stretching from Panama City along the Panama Canal, has unique bird species
and other animals, such as tapir, puma, and caimans. At the Pacific entrance of the
canal is the Centro de Exhibiciones Marinas (Marine Exhibitions Center), a research
center for those interested in tropical marine life and ecology, managed by the
Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute.

Tropical forests around Panama are vital for the functioning of the Panama Canal,
providing it with the water required for its operation. Due to the canal's
importance to the Panamanian economy, tropical forests around the canal have been
kept in an almost pristine state; the canal is thus a rare example of a vast
engineering project in the middle of a forest that helped to preserve that forest.
Along the western side of the canal is the Parque Nacional Soberanía (Sovereignty
National Park), which includes the Summit botanical gardens and a zoo. The best
known trail in this national park is Pipeline Road, popular among birdwatchers.[7]
Nearly 500 rivers lace Panama's rugged landscape. Most are unnavigable; many
originate as swift highland streams, meander in valleys, and form coastal deltas.
However, the Río Chepo and the Río Chagres, both within the boundaries of the city,
work as sources of hydroelectric power.

The Río Chagres is one of the longest and most vital of the approximately 150
rivers