In 1897, Spanish-born musician
Santos Jorge composed the "Himno Istmeño", which was initially a student song but reached levels of popularity among the population. Jorge had composed the official music for the anthem, but it had no lyrics, so he told his friend
Jerónimo Ossa to write lyrics for it. However, this song is not the same as the one currently performed, since it underwent some changes. No records are found of how or by whom the changes were made to the original anthem. Upon independence from
Colombia in 1903,
William I. Buchanan, the United States' first ambassador and minister plenipotentiary to Panama, was to present credentials to the Provisional Junta of Government, and there was no anthem to perform, as required by usual protocol. Jorge suggested that his anthem be used for such an occasion, which was accepted, since the song was supported by the general public. Jorge asked his friend Jerónimo Ossa to write lyrics, to which he agreed and wrote the lyrics for the Panamanian national anthem. In 1906, the
National Assembly adopted the anthem in accordance with Law 39 and provisionally, since it was decided to hold a contest to choose a new composition. The Panamanian people chose it again. Later, in the
1941 Constitution, an article was included that definitively adopted the National Anthem as a symbol of the nation. == Lyrics ==