Panama Indians

The indigenous population of Panama or the Panama Indians according to the 1980 census is just over five percent of the total population of Panama (just a little over 93,000). The Panama Indians are said to be declining proportionately. On the other hand, the exact numbers of the Panama Indians are uncertain. Even the specific status of several small tribes, are unsure because many of the Panama Indians are in the process of assimilation.

Even the language (once considered as the most certain way to identify a person), has become unreliable in identifying Panama Indians. Because even if there is a small group of people that practice indigenous ways or tradition, yet speaks only Spanish, is considered as Panama Indians by their fellow citizen in their community. Most of the Indian population in Panama was concentrated in the remote section of the country. Most of the tribes seek isolation as the means of preserving their traditional cultures. For example, the Guaymi (a group of indigenous tribe in Panama) roughly estimated to be 50,000 to 55,000 in numbers, settled in the remote section northwest of Panama. The Guaymi also has little concern regarding linguistic purity. They had embraced a wide array of Spanish origin words; however, the Guaymi has preserved their indigenous religious beliefs and tradition.

The Cuna or Kuna, who inhabited mainly on the Caribbean coast, east of Colon, were almost one third of all Panama Indians; roughly estimated to be about 30,000 in populace. There are lots of Panama Indians scattered in the remote section of western Panama. The Choco or referred to as the Embera, occupied the southeastern region of Darien, near the border of Colombia. The Emberas were mostly bilingual (Spanish and their own dialect, Choco) and have supposedly intermarried broadly with Colombian blacks.
The Terraba, another small Indian tribe, lived along the environs of Rio Teribe. The Terraba tribe was decimated by persistent tuberculosis epidemics; however, the population came back with the availability of better medical care in the fifties. The contact of the Terrabas and outsiders then increase as several religious missionaries tried to get in touch with the tribe.

All of the tribes in Panama are under the jurisdiction of the provincial and municipal government of Panama. The Republic of Panama gave authorization to the Indigenous Policy Section of the Ministry of Government and Justice to oversee the well being of all the Indians in Panama. The said agency made lots of special administrative arrangements to those districts which Indians make up a large part of the population. The national government of Panama has tried to educate the indigenous people of Panama. However, the illiteracy rate among Indians who are 10 years of age is almost 80 percent of their total population.