Veraguas Province


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 km² and in 2019 it had an estimated population of 247,644.

History

Veraguas was explored by Christopher Columbus on his fourth voyage. He tried to establish the first colony in the new Spanish mainland but failed due to resistance from native Indians. Diego de Nicuesa also tried to make a colony and failed, which made him create a colony to fight against the Indians called Nombre de Dios. Its capital, Santiago de Veraguas, was founded about 1636.
It is said that its name comes from the indigenous word "Veracua" or "Viragua", though other theories abound. It is the only province in Panama with coastlines on both the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean. The majority of people live on the Pacific side; the Caribbean coast is mostly uninhabited.

Tourism

Veraguas has many groups of inhabitants, mainly of Spanish-Indian origin named campesinos. This land offers tourists and visitors close contact with nature. Forests, mountains, coasts, and islands where there are more than 200 varieties of orchids; more than 400 species of birds, in addition to mammals, reptiles, and insects.
Veraguas has various national parks. The Coiba National Park,, Cerro Hoya National Park, Santa Fe National Park, La Yeguada Forest reserve and El Montuoso Forest reserve.
Beaches such as Playa Santa Catalina, Playa Mariato, Malena, and Torio offer great places for recreation, surfing, and fishing. Other famous touristic areas is the Iglesia de San Francisco de la Montaña. This church has a Baroque architecture and dates back to 1727. It was declared a National Historical Monument on January 27, 1937.

Administrative divisions

Veraguas Province is divided into 12 distritos and subdivided into 104 corregimientos.
DistritoArea
Population
Estimate
2010		Population
Estimate
2019
Atalaya15610,74911,321
Calobre80612,11212,159
Cañazas78917,73718,022
La Mesa51112,25612,062
Las Palmas1,01518,51618,493
Mariato1,3815,5845,564
Montijo7806,9287,060
Río de Jesús3025,3765,501
San Francisco43710,41210,536
Santa Fe1,92016,42317,341
Santiago97193,84199,821
Soná1,51929,32929,774

District
Corregimientos
Cabecera
Atalaya DistrictJesús Nazareno de Atalaya, El Barrito, La Montañuela, San Antonio, La CarrilloJesús Nazareno de Atalaya
Calobre DistrictCalobre, Barnizal, Chitra, El Cocla, El Potrero, La Laguna, La Raya de Calobre, La Tetilla, La Yeguada, Las Guías, Monjarás, San JoséCalobre
Cañazas DistrictSan Francisco Javier de Cañazas, Cerro de Plata, Los Valles, San Marcelo, El Picador, San José, El Aromillo, Las CrucesSan Francisco Javier de Cañazas
La Mesa DistrictLa Mesa, Bisvalles, Boró, Llano Grande, San Bartolo, Los Milagros, El HigoLa Mesa
Las Palmas DistrictLas Palmas, Cerro de Casa, Corozal, El María, El Prado, El Rincón, Lolá, Pixvae, Puerto Vidal, Zapotillo, San Martín de Porres, Viguí, Manuel Encarnación Amador TerrerosLas Palmas
Mariato DistrictMariato, Arenas, El Cacao, Quebro, TebarioMariato
Montijo DistrictMontijo, Isla Gobernadora, La Garceana, Leones, Pilón, Cébaco, Costa Hermosa, Unión del NorteMontijo
Río de Jesús DistrictLa Ermita de Río de Jesús, Catorce de Noviembre, Las Huacas, Los Castillos, Utira, Nuevo San JuanLa Ermita de Río de Jesús
San Francisco DistrictSan Francisco de la Montaña, Corral Falso, Los Hatillos, Remance, San Juan, San JoséSan Francisco de la Montaña
Santa Fe DistrictSanta Fe, Calovébora, El Alto, El Cuay, El Pantano, Gatuncito, Río Luis, Rubén CantúSanta Fe
Santiago DistrictSantiago Apóstol de Veraguas, La Colorada, La Peña, La Raya de Santa María, Ponuga, San Pedro del Espino, Canto del Llano, Los Algarrobos, Carlos Santana Ávila, Edwin Fábrega, San Martín de Porres, Urracá, La Soledad, Rincón Largo, El LlanitoSantiago Apóstol de Veraguas
Soná DistrictSoná, Bahía Honda, Calidonia, Cativé, El Marañón, Guarumal, La Soledad, Quebrada de Oro, Río Grande, Rodeo Viejo, HicacoSoná