Phrasebook

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Spanish is the official language of Panama, however, this apparently simple statement belies a complex linguistic labyrinth that every traveller will have to negotiate to a greater or lesser degree. Nearly 20 languages have been identified as in use in Panama today, with dialectic differences complicating things further. The majority of these are the languages of native Indo-American tribes, which are in turn mixed with Chinese, French, English and even Arabic in various creoles. The multiple linguistic identity is due in part to the number of immigrants brought in to work on the construction of the Panama Canal over the last century. However, those who are not multi-lingual need not despair. A working knowledge of Spanish will be more than enough to get around Panama, and the fact that so many different languages co-exist, for the most part happily, means locals will often be open to translating your clumsy assaults on the local language.

Panamanian Spanish differs in a number of minor but not insignificant ways from European Spanish. It is worth investing in a Latin American Spanish guidebook in order to learn about the different forms, particularly as it is possible (though unlikely) that you may encounter some confusion or even hostility if speaking with textbook inflexions. However, some basic Spanish phrases should get you far:

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