Panama's seven different indigenous groups are a vibrant part of the country's cultural diversity.  The nearly 400 islands of the Comarca de Kuna Yala are ruled by a colorful tribe who welcome respectful visitors to their white-sand beaches and coral reefs.  The Kuna say they have 365 islands, one for every day of the year.

The islands are home to the Kuna, who run San Blas as a comarca with minimal interference from the national government.  The Kuna have governed the region since the 1920s, when the Panamanian government granted the tribe the right of self-rule.  The Kuna Indians have  much to share with visitors from the simple beauty of their islands to their rich cultural traditions.

The San Blas islands stretch along approximately 200 miles of Panama's Caribean coastline and the San Blas reservation, also known as Kuna Yala, is defined from the seaward continental shelf to the top of the jungle-clad continental divide some miles inland.

Within this territory, the Kuna Indians, a short, stocky people of great simplicity and charm whose ancestors peopled these shores long before Columbus landed, govern themselves in a virtually autonomous society.

The pattern of their lives is simple and comfortable.   They live on tiny, palm-fringed islands, hundreds of which dot the surface of the blue and esmerald sea.  The islands are totally free from animals or snakes and have a perfect, breeze-cooled tropical climate.

Today there are an estimated 70,000 Kuna:  32,000 live on the district's islands, 8000 live on tribal land along the coast and 30,000 live outside the district.  So communal are the island Kuna that they inhabit 40 of the nearly 400 keys, the rest are mostly left to coconut trees, sea turtles and iguanas.

Kuna women preserve Kuna tradition and culture through their clothing, jewerly and beauty.  Kunas Embroider and wear the beautiful Molas considered to be one of the most sophisticated textile craft in Latin America.

Most Kuna women continue to dress as their ancestors did.  Their faces are distinguished by a black line painted from the forehead to the tip of the nose.  A gold ring is worn through the nose.  A lenght of colorful printed cloth is wrapped around the waist as a skirt, topped by a short-sleeved blouse covered in brilliantly colored molas (Traditional Kuna Textile). A red and yellow patterned shawl on their heads, many gold necklaces, rings and bracelets complete the daily outfit.  To make themselves more attractive, the women also wrap their legs, from ankle to knee, in long strands of colorful beads (chaquiras).

The economy of the Comarca focuses on the harvest of coconuts, which the Kunas sell mainly to Colombia ships going through the region.   The coconuts are bartered for food, cloths or accessories such as sun glasses.

Since the late 1990s, sales of handcrafted Mola Art have brought the Kuna more income than the sales of coconuts.  And as Mola sales represent cash money rather than bartered goods, Kuna Women now earn more than most men.  You'll seldom see a Kuna woman's hands idle. 

Mola art began when Kuna women gained access to modern (fabrics).  The first designs represented their culture, mythology, animals and plants.  Today's Molas are still made in traditional, geometric designs, but might also be inspired by comic book characters, advertising or political posters.  Over the last few years, a mad rush of North Americans and Europeans have made Mola Folk Art one of the hottest new collectibles.