View source for Chiriquí Province

{{Short description|Province of Panama}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name               = Chiriquí Province
| native_name        = Provincia de Chiriquí
| native_name_lang   = es
| settlement_type    = [[Provinces of Panama|Province]]
| image_skyline      = VistaBoquete.jpg
| image_alt          = 
| image_caption      = 
| image_flag         = Bandera de la Provincia de Chiriquí.svg
| flag_alt           = 
| image_seal         = 
| seal_alt           = 
| image_shield       = 
| shield_alt         = 
| nickname           = 
| motto              = 
| image_map          = Chiriqui in Panama.svg
| map_alt            = 
| map_caption        = 
| pushpin_map        = 
| pushpin_label_position = 
| pushpin_map_alt    = 
| pushpin_map_caption = 
| coordinates        = {{Wikidatacoord|Q739651|display=inline,title}}
| coor_pinpoint      = Seat of Government
| coordinates_footnotes = 
| subdivision_type   = Country
| subdivision_name   = [[Panama]]
| subdivision_type1  = Capital
| subdivision_name1  = 
| established_title  = Founded
| established_date   = 26 May 1849
| founder            = 
| seat_type          = Capital
| seat               = [[David, Chiriquí|David]]
| government_footnotes = 
| leader_party       = 
| leader_title       = 
| leader_name        = 
| unit_pref          = Metric
| area_footnotes     = 
| area_total_km2     = 6490.9
| area_land_km2      = 
| area_water_km2     = 
| area_water_percent = 
| area_note          = 
| elevation_footnotes = 
| elevation_max_m    = 3477
| elevation_min_m    = 0
| population_footnotes = <ref name="Instituto Nacional">Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censo, Ciudad de Panamá.</ref>
| population_total   = 471,071
| population_as_of   = 2023 census
| population_density_km2 = auto
| population_demonym = 
| population_note    = 
| demographics_type1 = [[GDP|GDP (PPP, constant 2015 values)]]
| demographics1_footnotes = 
| demographics1_title1 = Year
| demographics1_info1 = 2023
| demographics1_title2 = Total
| demographics1_info2 = $11.9&nbsp;billion<ref name="TelluBase">{{cite web |url=https://tellusant.com/repo/tb/tellubase_factsheet_pan.pdf |publisher=Tellusant |title=TelluBase—Panama Fact Sheet (Tellusant Public Service Series) |access-date=11 January 2024 |archive-date=15 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240115225618/https://tellusant.com/repo/tb/tellubase_factsheet_pan.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>
| demographics1_title3 = Per capita
| demographics1_info3 = $26,800
| blank_name_sec1    = [[Gini coefficient|Gini]] (2007)
| blank_info_sec1    = 32.9 (<span style="color:green;">low</span>)
| blank_name_sec2    = [[Human Development Index|HDI]] (2021)
| blank_info_sec2    = 0.805<ref name="GlobalDataLab">{{Cite web |url=https://hdi.globaldatalab.org/areadata/shdi/ |title=Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab |website=hdi.globaldatalab.org |language=en |access-date=16 March 2024 |archive-date=23 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180923120638/https://hdi.globaldatalab.org/areadata/shdi/ |url-status=live }}</ref><br/>{{color|green|very high}}
| timezone1          = [[Eastern Time Zone|EDT]]
| utc_offset1        = -5
| timezone1_DST      = 
| utc_offset1_DST    = 
| postal_code_type   = 
| postal_code        = 
| area_code_type     = 
| area_code          = 
| iso_code           = PA-4
| website            = 
}}
'''Chiriquí''', officially the '''Chiriquí Province''' ({{langx|es|Provincia de Chiriquí|link=no}}, {{IPA|es|tʃiɾiˈki|pron}}), is a [[Provinces of Panama|province]] of [[Panama]] located on the western coast; it is the second most developed province in the country, after [[Panamá Province]]. Its capital is the city of [[David, Chiriquí|David]]. It has a total area of 6,490.9&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>, with a population of 471,071 as of the year 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Panama: Provinces & Major Urban Places - Population Statistics, Maps, Charts, Weather and Web Information |url=https://www.citypopulation.de/en/panama/cities/ |access-date=10 March 2024 |website=www.citypopulation.de |archive-date=13 July 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240713163600/http://www.citypopulation.de/en/panama/cities/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Instituto Nacional"/>
The province of Chiriquí is bordered to the north by the province of [[Bocas del Toro Province|Bocas del Toro]], to the west by [[Costa Rica]], to the east by the province of [[Veraguas]], and to the south by the Pacific Ocean, specifically the [[Gulf of Chiriquí]].

==History==
{{unsourced|section|date=August 2023}}
[[File:Parque Nacional Chiriquí.JPG|200px|left|thumb|Beach in [[Chiriquí National Park]]]]
Until the arrival of the Spanish ''[[conquistador]]es'', Chiriquí was populated by a number of indigenous tribes, known collectively as the [[Ngäbe people|Guaymí people]].

The first European to visit and describe Chiriquí was [[Gaspar de Espinosa]], in 1519. The province was officially established on 26 May 1849, when Panama was still part of [[Colombia]]. Several years later, President [[Abraham Lincoln]] of the United States proposed Chiriquí as a favored location for [[Linconia]], a colony for free blacks from the United States. Only 349 accepted the offer. Most blacks were not interested.

Chiriquí was the province in which [[Manuel Noriega]] rose in the military ranks in the late 20th century; he helped bring [[Omar Torrijos]] back into the country after a coup d'état. Noriega had jeeps lined up with their lights on the runway in [[David, Chiriquí|David]] to allow Torrijos's aircraft to land. Chiriqui was at the heart of a short-lived pro-democracy [[Guerrilla warfare|guerrilla]] movement in the late 1960s and early 1970s. After the dictatorship by Manuel Noriega from 1983 to 1989, [[Guillermo Endara]] became president of Panama; he appointed Edgar De Puy as governor of Chiriquí.

==Administrative divisions==
As of the 2023 Census, Chiriquí Province is divided into 14 ''distritos'' (districts) and sub-divided into 105 ''[[Corregimientos of Panama|corregimientos]]''.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=10 June 2025 |title=Resultados Finales Básicos XII Censo Nacional de Población y VIII de Vivienda 2023 |url=https://www.inec.gob.pa/publicaciones/Default3.aspx?ID_PUBLICACION=1199&ID_CATEGORIA=19&ID_SUBCATEGORIA=71https://www.inec.gob.pa/archivos/P0705547520231109105354CUADRO%2010.xls }}</ref>
{| class="sortable wikitable"
!''Distrito''
!Area<br/>(km<sup>2</sup>)<ref name=":0" />
!Population 2000<ref name=":0" />
!Population
2010<ref name=":0" />
!Population 2023<ref name=":0" />
|-
| [[Alanje District|Alanje]]
| align="right" |455
| align="right" |15,497
| align="right" |16,508
| align="right" |18,877
|-
| [[Barú District, Chiriquí|Barú]]
| align="right" |600
| align="right" |60,551
| align="right" |55,775
| align="right" |56,307
|-
| [[Boquerón District|Boquerón]]
| align="right" |298
| align="right" |12,275
| align="right" |15,029
| align="right" |21,001
|-
| [[Boquete District|Boquete]]
| align="right" |490
| align="right" |16,943
| align="right" |21,370
| align="right" |23,562
|-
| [[Bugaba District|Bugaba]]
| align="right" |517
| align="right" |51,522
| align="right" |78,209
| align="right" |68,870
|-
| [[David District|David]]
| align="right" |892
| align="right" |124,280
| align="right" |144,858
| align="right" |156,498
|-
| [[Dolega District|Dolega]]
| align="right" |251
| align="right" |17,243
| align="right" |25,102
| align="right" |37,678
|-
| [[Gualaca District|Gualaca]]
| align="right" |619
| align="right" |8,348
| align="right" |9,750
| align="right" |9,831
|-
| [[Remedios District|Remedios]]
| align="right" |172
| align="right" |3,489
| align="right" |4,052
| align="right" |4,388
|-
| [[Renacimiento District|Renacimiento]]
| align="right" |527
| align="right" |18,257
| align="right" |20,524
| align="right" |22,429
|-
| [[San Félix District|San Félix]]
| align="right" |226
| align="right" |5,276
| align="right" |6,304
| align="right" |6,881
|-
| [[San Lorenzo District, Panama|San Lorenzo]]
| align="right" |689
| align="right" |6,498
| align="right" |7,507
| align="right" |8,031
|-
| [[Tierras Altas District|Tierras Altas]]
| align="right" |360
| align="right" |17,048
| align="right" |20,471
| align="right" |23,525
|-
| [[Tolé District|Tolé]]
| align="right" |485
| align="right" |11,563
| align="right" |11,885
| align="right" |13,193
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! District
! ''Corregimientos'' (Subdivisions)
! ''Cabecera'' (Seat)
|-
| [[Alanje District]]
| [[Alanje|Santiago de Alanje]], [[Canta Gallo]], [[Divalá]], [[El Tejar, Chiriquí|El Tejar]], [[Guarumal, Chiriquí|Guarumal]], [[Nuevo México, Chiriquí|Nuevo México]], [[Palo Grande]], [[Querévalo]], [[Santo Tomás, Chiriquí|Santo Tomás]]
| [[Alanje|Santiago de Alanje]]
|-
| [[Barú District, Chiriquí|Barú District]]
| [[Puerto Armuelles|Puerto Tomás Armuelles]], [[Baco, Chiriquí|Baco]], [[Limones, Chiriquí|Limones]], [[Progreso, Chiriquí|Progreso]], [[Rodolfo Aguilar Delgado]], [[El Palmar, Chiriqui|El Palmar]], [[Manaca, Chiriqui|Manaca]]
| [[Puerto Armuelles|Puerto Tomás Armuelles]]
|-
| [[Boquerón District]]
| [[Boquerón, Chiriquí|Boquerón]], [[Bágala]], [[Cordillera, Chiriquí|Cordillera]], [[Guabal, panama|Guabal]], [[Guayabal, Panama|Guayabal]], [[Paraíso, Chiriquí|Paraíso]], [[Pedregal, Boquerón|Pedregal]], [[Tijeras, Chiriquí|Tijeras]]
| [[Boquerón, Chiriquí|Boquerón]]
|-
| [[Boquete District]]
| [[Bajo Boquete]], [[Alto Boquete]], [[Caldera, Chiriquí|Caldera]], [[Jaramillo, Chiriquí|Jaramillo]], [[Los Naranjos, Chiriquí|Los Naranjos]], [[Palmira, Chiriquí|Palmira]]
| [[Bajo Boquete]]
|-
| [[Bugaba District]]
| [[La Concepción, Chiriquí|La Concepción]], [[Aserrío de Gariché]], [[Bugaba Corregimiento|Bugaba]], [[El Bongo]], [[Gómez, Chiriquí|Gómez]], [[La Estrella, Chiriquí|La Estrella]], [[San Andrés, Chiriquí|San Andrés]], [[Santa Marta, Chiriquí|Santa Marta]], [[Santa Rosa, Chiriquí|Santa Rosa]], [[Santo Domingo, Chiriquí|Santo Domingo]], [[Solano, Chiriquí|Solano]], [[Sortová]], [[San Isidro, Chiriqui|San Isidro]]
| [[La Concepción, Chiriquí|La Concepción]]
|-
| [[David District]]
| [[David, Chiriqui|San José de David]], [[Bijagual]], [[Cochea]], [[Chiriquí, Chiriquí|Chiriquí]], [[Guacá]], [[Las Lomas, Chiriquí|Las Lomas]], [[Pedregal, David|Pedregal]], [[San Carlos, Chiriquí|San Carlos]], [[San Pablo Nuevo]], [[San Pablo Viejo]], [[David Este, Chiriqui|David Este]], [[David Sur, Chiriqui|David Sur]]
| [[David, Chiriqui|San José de David]]
|-
| [[Dolega District]]
| [[Dolega, Chiriquí|San Francisco de Dolega]], [[Dos Ríos, Chiriquí|Dos Ríos]], [[Los Algarrobos, Chiriquí|Los Algarrobos]], [[Los Anastacios]], [[Potrerillos, Chiriquí|Potrerillos]], [[Potrerillos Abajo]], [[Rovira, Chiriquí|Rovira]], [[Tinajas, Chiriquí|Tinajas]]
| [[Dolega, Chiriquí|San Francisco de Dolega]]
|-
| [[Gualaca District]]
| [[Gualaca]], [[Hornito, Chiriquí|Hornito]], [[Los Ángeles, Chiriquí|Los Angeles]], [[Paja de Sombrero]], [[Rincón, Chiriquí|Rincón]]
| [[Gualaca]]
|-
| [[Remedios District]]
| [[Remedios, Chiriquí|Nuestra Señora de los Remedios]], [[El Nancito]], [[El Porvenir, Chiriquí|El Porvenir]], [[El Puerto, Chiriquí|El Puerto]], [[Santa Lucía, Chiriquí|Santa Lucía]]
| [[Remedios, Chiriquí|Nuestra Señora de los Remedios]]
|-
| [[Renacimiento District]]
| [[Río Sereno]], [[Breñón]], [[Cañas Gordas]], [[Dominical, Chiriquí|Dominical]], [[Monte Lirio]], [[Plaza de Caisán]], [[Santa Clara, Chiriquí|Santa Clara]], [[Santa Cruz, Renacimiento|Santa Cruz]]
| [[Río Sereno]]
|-
| [[San Félix District]]
| [[Las Lajas, Chiriquí|Las Lajas]], [[Juay]], [[Lajas Adentro]], [[San Félix, Chiriquí|San Félix]], [[Santa Cruz, San Félix|Santa Cruz]]
| [[Las Lajas, Chiriquí|Las Lajas]]
|-
| [[San Lorenzo District, Panama|San Lorenzo District]]
| [[Horconcitos]], [[Boca Chica, Chiriquí|Boca Chica]], [[Boca del Monte]], [[San Juan, Chiriquí|San Juan]], [[San Lorenzo, Chiriquí|San Lorenzo]]
| [[Horconcitos]]
|-
| [[Tierras Altas District]]
| [[Volcán, Panama|Volcán]], [[Cerro Punta, Chiriquí|Cerro Punta]], [[Cuesta de Piedra]], [[Nueva California, Chiriquí|Nueva California]], [[Paso Ancho]]
| [[Volcán, Panama|Volcán]]
|-
| [[Tolé District]]
| [[Tolé]], [[Bella Vista, Chiriquí|Bella Vista]], [[Cerro Viejo]], [[El Cristo, Chiriquí|El Cristo]], [[Justo Fidel Palacios]], [[Lajas de Tolé]], [[Potrero de Caña]], [[Quebrada de Piedra]], [[Veladero]]
| [[Tolé]]
|}

Note: Through Law 55 of 13 September 2013, the creation of [[Tierras Altas District]] had been approved, consisting of the ''corregimientos'' of Cerro Punta, Cuesta de Piedra, Nueva California, Paso Ancho and Volcán, which were split off from [[Bugaba District]]. The new district was to have Volcán as its main centre. Also through that same law, the ''corregimiento'' of [[Solano, Chiriquí|Solano]] was created, after splitting off from the ''corregimiento'' of [[La Concepción, Chiriquí|La Concepción, Bugaba]]. That new administrative division within Chiriquí Province was to come into effect by 2 May 2019.<ref>[http://www.presidencia.gob.pa/4848-Presidente-sanciona-Ley-que-crea-distrito-de-Tierras-Altas-en-Chiriqui «Presidente sanciona Ley que crea distrito de Tierras Altas en Chiriquí»], Article from 16 September 2013 on the Ministry of Presidency of Panama website.</ref><ref>{{cite journal |url=http://gacetas.procuraduria-admon.gob.pa/27374_2013.pdf |title=Ley 55 |date=16 September 2013 |journal=Gaceta Oficial Digital |volume=Año CIX |number=27374 |pages=2–11 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |access-date=19 March 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304090750/http://gacetas.procuraduria-admon.gob.pa/27374_2013.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Climate==
The province features a variety of [[climates]], from hot and [[humid]] [[lowland]]s to the cool and moist [[highland (geography)|highlands]]. The district is home to [[Fortuna Forest Reserve]].

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.mypanamalive.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=16&Itemid=31 Knowing more about Chiriqui in My Panama Live]
* [https://dx.doi.org/10.11141/ia.28.5 K. Holmberg 2010 'Placing Immateriality: Situating the Material of Highland Chiriquí', Internet Archaeology 28.] {{doi|10.11141/ia.28.5}}
* [http://libmma.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/p15324coll10/id/119785/rec/1 The Art of Precolumbian Gold: The Jan Mitchell Collection], an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art (fully available online as PDF), which contains material on Chiriqui
* {{cite journal |url=http://boletinsgm.igeolcu.unam.mx/bsgm/vols/epoca04/7001/%287%29Temoltzin.pdf |last1=Temoltzin-Loranca |first1=Yunuén |first2=María Isabel |last2=Velez |first3=Enrique |last3=Moreno |first4=Jaime |last4=Escobar |date=2018 |title=Late Holocene environmental change in Lake Boquete and its watershed: human or natural causes? |journal=Boletín de la Sociedad Geológica Mexicana |volume=70 |number=1 |pages=121–131 |doi=10.18268/BSGM2018v70n1a7 |doi-access=free }}

{{Chiriquí Province}}
{{Provinces and regions of Panama}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chiriqui Province}}
[[Category:Chiriquí Province| ]]
[[Category:Provinces of Panama]]
[[Category:States and territories established in 1849]]
[[Category:1849 establishments in the Republic of New Granada]]