"In 1878 Ferdinand de Lesseps, the French engineer who built the Suez Canal, began to dig a canal across the Isthmus of Panama, which was then part of Colombia. Tropical disease and engineering problems halted construction on the canal, but a French business (the New Panama Canal Company) still held the rights to the project. Roosevelt agreed to pay $40 million for the rights, and he began to negotiate with Colombia for control of the land. He offered $10 million for a fifty-mile strip across the Isthmus. Colombia refused. 'We were dealing with a government of irresponsible bandits,' Roosevelt stormed. 'I was prepared to...at once occupy the Isthmus anyhow, and proceed to dig the canal. But I deemed it likely that there would be a revolution in Panama soon.' Teddy was right. The chief engineer of the New Panama Canal Company organized a local revolt. Roosevelt immediately sent the battleship Nashville and a detachment of marines to Panama to support the new government. Roosevelt ordered army engineers to start digging. Thousands of workers sweated in the malarial heat. They tore up jungles and cut down mountains. Insects thrived in muddy, stagnant pools. 'Mosquitoes get so thick you get a mouthful with every breath,' a worker complained. The mosquitoes also carried yellow fever, and many fell victim to the deadly disease before Dr. William Gorgas found a way to stop it." (Small Planet Communications, The Panama Canal)

The Panama Canal is important because it connected the Pacific and Atlantic Ocean, saving sailors about an 8,000 mile journey. So it opened up trade between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

In the old days, Alfred Thayer Mahan believed that a strong navy meant a strong country. Thus we would need two navies, one for the Atlantic and one for the Pacific. However, The canal made it possible to need only one Navy.

It is important for shipping. It saves vast amount of time and money. Without it, ships would have to travel twice the length to get from New York to L.A. A ship traveling from New York to California has to travel about 14,000 miles by going down south of South America. If it goes through the Canal the trip is about around 5-6k miles. Before the Canal there was a railroad but this required unloading and loading a ship on the other side. This would take several days and required shippers to have two ships per trip.

The Panama Canal, built after the United States intervened in the Panamanian Revolution, greatly decreased shipping times from East Coast businesses to their markets in the west like China. The deal struck with Panama, as well as the Hay-Pauncefote treaty, also gave the United States exclusive rights to the fortification of the canal.

The Panama Canal is important to international trade because it's located between the Americas so it makes travel for ships immensely less time consuming and safer. Also it overall shortens distance so it takes less fuel to make the journey from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean or vice versa.

The Panama Canal provides a shortcut to getting around the American Continents. Without it, ships would have to go south all the way around South America. It speeds up the transport of cargo and passengers between the coasts and getting to Pacific ports. Thus you can travel, by water, from California to Florida, without having to go around South America.

Spanish is the official language of Panama, much the same as it is in all of Central America. A large number of Panamanians speak both Spanish and English.

The offical language of Panama is Spanish

Spanish

Spanish, English, and seven more indigenous languages

• The main and official Panama language is Spanish, which is widely spoken by most of the people in the country. This Panama language is loved and respected by every citizen and gives them a unique and separate identity.
• However apart from Spanish, another popular Panama language is English, which is fluently spoken by ~ 15% of the population.
• English is also one of the chosen mediums of instruction and education in numerous good schools in Panama.

Answer
spanish

Spanish