Country · Americas
Panama
Republic of Panama
Panama is a country in Central America. About 4.2 million people live there, in an area of 75 417 square kilometres. Its capital city is Panama City.
Picture credit: FranHogan (CC BY-SA 4.0) · FranHogan (CC BY-SA 4.0) · JAVR2020 (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Virpana (CC0) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is Panama?
Panama lies in Central America, on the continent of Americas.
It sits in the northern half of the world, roughly 1 002 km from the equator.
Its coastline is about 2 490 km long.
It shares a border with 2 countries: Colombia and Costa Rica.
How big is Panama?
Panama covers 75 417 square kilometres.
That is about 29 times the size of Luxembourg.
Among the world's countries that makes it the 116th largest.
Spread everybody out evenly and you get about 55.4 people on every square kilometre.
That is close to the world average of roughly 60 people per square kilometre.
Who lives in Panama?
About 4.2 million people live in Panama.
That is the 126th biggest population in the world.
People here speak Spanish.
They pay with the Panamanian balboa and United States dollar.
On average, people born here can expect to live about 76 years.
The land of Panama
The land of Panama sits on average 360 metres above sea level.
Its coast runs for about 2 490 km. Walking it end to end, at twenty kilometres a day, would take roughly 125 days.
It lies inside the tropics, which is the single biggest reason its weather is the way it is.
What makes Panama different?
A dish the country is known for: Sancocho de gallina.
Websites from here often end in .pa.
Panama and the rest of the world
Out of every thousand people alive on Earth, about one lives in Panama.
It takes up about 0.06 % of all the land that countries stand on.
Within Americas the country ranks 20th of 35 by size, and 21st by population.
Panama and its neighbours
Colombia, its largest neighbour, is about 15.1 times bigger.
Colombia has more people: 49.6 million against 4.2 million.
Nature and animals
Of the animals on this site, 6 live wild in Panama: Brown-throated sloth, Ruby-throated hummingbird, Green iguana, Red-eyed tree frog, Coyote and Black-handed spider monkey. The highest mountain in the country is Volcán Barú, at 3 475 metres. The longest river in the country is the Río Chucunaque. The country has no large natural lake; its largest body of water, Gatun Lake, is a reservoir.
Brown-throated sloth
Ruby-throated hummingbird
Green iguana
Red-eyed tree frog
Coyote
Black-handed spider monkey
Photographs from Wikimedia Commons under free licences — every credit is on the page itself and in the picture credits.
How big is Panama compared with the United States?
- The United States is about 124 times as big as Panama: 9 372 610 km² against 75 417 km².
- The United Kingdom is about 3.2 times as big as Panama: 242 900 km² against 75 417 km².
Questions children ask
What is the capital of Panama?
The capital of Panama is Panama City. It is the city where the country's government works from.
How many people live in Panama?
About 4.2 million people live in Panama, which makes it the 126th most populated country in the world. (Source: World Bank, 2018.)
Which countries border Panama?
Panama borders Colombia and Costa Rica — 2 neighbours in total.
How big is Panama?
Panama covers 75 417 square kilometres, making it the 116th largest country in the world. That is about 29 times the size of Luxembourg.
What is the highest mountain in Panama?
The highest mountain in Panama is Volcán Barú, 3 475 metres above sea level. It is the country's highest point.
What is the longest river in Panama?
The longest river in Panama is the Río Chucunaque, about 231 kilometres long.
What is the largest lake in Panama?
The largest body of water in Panama is Gatun Lake, a reservoir of about 425 km²; there is no large natural lake in the country.
Which continent is Panama in?
Panama is in Americas, in the part called Central America.
Where these numbers come from
Borders and outlines: Natural Earth. Names, capitals, areas, languages and currencies: ISO 3166 data (world-countries). Population: World Bank, 2018. Every derived figure on this page (ranks, density, distance from the equator) is calculated from those values.
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