NATION
How to pronounce
Panama
PAN·uh·mah
American /ˈpæn.ə.mɑː/
Sound by sound
3 little beats. BIG = the stressed part.
- PAN the ‘a’ in cat — say this beat loudest
- uh the relaxed ‘uh’ in sofa
- mah the ‘ah’ in father
Talking about Panama
The words that trip people up — what to call the team, the people, and the language.
- One person
- a Panamanian
- The people / the team
- Panamanians (the team: <em>La Marea Roja</em>)
- As an adjective
- Panamanian
The nationality word is Panamanian (note the extra “-ni-”, not “Panaman”). The team is nicknamed La Marea Roja — “the Red Tide”.
Don’t say…
- puh-NAM-uh
- PAN-uh-muh (weak ending)
- pan-uh-MAH
- PAN·uh·mah — stress on PAN
Where the name comes from
Panama is said to come from an Indigenous word meaning “abundance of fish” — one popular account ties it to a fishing village the Spanish encountered along the Pacific coast in the early 1500s. Other readings link it to a local word for “far away” or to a kind of tree. The same name went on to the canal and the hat.
- Capital
- Panama City
- Confederation
- CONCACAF
- World Cup appearances
- 2 (debut 2018)
Hear it for real
Say it out loud — and check it.
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Practice in the appFAQ
How do you pronounce Panama?
Panama is pronounced PAN·uh·mah in American English — 3 beats, with the stress on PAN.
Where does the name Panama come from?
Panama is said to come from an Indigenous word meaning “abundance of fish” — one popular account ties it to a fishing village the Spanish encountered along the Pacific coast in the early 1500s. Other readings link it to a local word for “far away” or to a kind of tree. The same name went on to the canal and the hat.
Is the country said the same as “Panama hat”?
Yes — PAN-uh-mah, with the stress up front and a full “-mah” at the end. (The hat is actually made in Ecuador; it got its name because it was shipped through Panama.)