Darién (UK: /ˈdɛəriən, ˈdær-/,[3][4] US: /ˌdɛəriˈɛn, ˌdɑːr-, dɑːrˈjɛn/;[3][5][6] Spanish: [daˈɾjen]) is a province in Panama whose capital city is La Palma.

With an area of 11,896.5 km2 (4,593.3 sq mi), it is located at the eastern end of the country and bordered to the north by the province of Panamá and the region of Kuna Yala.

Santa María la Antigua del Darién, the first city founded in Tierra Firme, also took its name from the river.

[11] During the late 17th century there was a Scottish colonization project in the Isthmus of Panama (specifically in Darién), from which William Paterson emerged as the center of the unsuccessful attempt.

The attempt to colonize by the Company of Scotland, which traded with Africa and the Indies, was part of the conflict between Spain and other 16th-century European powers in reaction to the 1494 Treaty of Tordesillas.

On July 14, 1698 Paterson left with an expedition of about 1,200 on five ships (Saint Andrew, Caledonia, Unicorn, Dolphin and Endeavour) from Leith, Scotland.

On November 30, 1699 they arrived safely at the port of Caledonia, but met greater resistance from Spanish forces; they were besieged, outnumbered and without external support.

[13] The comarca indígena of Kuna de Wargandí, established in 2000, lies within Pinogana District and constitutes a separate corregimiento.

It consists of two districts: Darién Province covers an area of 11,896 square kilometres (4,593 sq mi), comparable to the island of Jamaica.

In the centre is an undulating plain, fed by the rivers Chucunaque and Tuira and framed by steep areas of the highlands of San Blas, Bagre, Pirre, and the Saltos.

However, in the foothills and valleys of the province's interior precipitation can exceed 8,000 mm (310 in) per year with virtually no dry season (a tropical rainforest climate, Köppen Af); this ranks the area among the rainiest regions on earth.

The lack of detailed information on topography and hydrometeorology makes it difficult to estimate hydropower potential, but possible candidates are the Pirre, Antad, Tuira, Chico and Yape Rivers.

In 1970 the population totaled 22,685, primarily mulattoes, black people, indigenous Colombian Chocoanos and settlers from other areas of Panama.

[15] The population is primarily indigenous, Afro-Descendants, and settlers who migrated from other provinces (mainly Santeña, Herrerano and Veraguas) in search of land and opportunity.