Honduras

     From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Honduras is a nation of northern Central America, bordered to the west by Guatemala and El Salvador, to the south by Nicaragua and the Pacific Ocean and to the north by the Gulf of Honduras and the Caribbean Sea. The nation of Belize (formerly "British Honduras") is some 75 km away across the Bay of Honduras at the two nation's closest points.

Republica de Honduras

coat of arms (In Detail) (Full size)
National motto:
Official language	Spanish
Capital	Tegucigalpa
Capital's coordinates	14° 6' N, 87° 13' W
President	Ricardo Maduro
Area  - Total  - % water	Ranked 101th 112,090 km² xx% / Negligible
Population  - Total (2000)  - Density	96th 6,249,598 xxx/km²
Independence  - Declared  - Recognised	(from Spain) 1821 1823
Currency	Lempira
Time zone	UTC -6 (DST, yes or not)
National anthem	Tu bandera es un lampo de cielo
Internet TLD	.HN
Calling Code	504

Table of contents

1 History 2 Politics 3 Departments 4 Geography 5 Economy 6 Demographics 7 Culture 8 Miscellaneous topics

History

Main article: History of Honduras Part of Spain's vast empire in the New World, Honduras became a state of the nation of Central America in 1821, and became an independent republic at the demise of the union in 1840.

After two and one-half decades of mostly military rule, a freely elected civilian government came to power in 1982. During the 1980s, Honduras proved a haven for anti-Sandinista contras fighting the Nicaraguan government and an ally to Salvadoran government forces fighting against leftist guerrillas.

Politics

Main article: Politics of Honduras

Departments

Main article: Departments of Honduras Honduras is divided into 18 departments:

• Atlantida
• Choluteca
• Colon
• Comayagua
• Copan
• Cortes
• El Paraiso
• Francisco Morazan
• Gracias a Dios
• Intibuca
• Islas de la Bahia
• La Paz
• Lempira
• Ocotepeque
• Olancho
• Santa Barbara
• Valle
• Yoro

Geography

Main article: Geography of Honduras

Honduras borders the Caribbean Sea and North Pacific Ocean. The climate varies from subtropical in lowlands to temperate in mountains.

Honduran terrain consists mainly of mountains, but there are narrow plains along the coasts.

Natural resources include timber, gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, iron ore, antimony, coal, fish, and hydropower.

Economy

Main article: Economy of Honduras Honduras spent 1999 primarily recovering from Hurricane Mitch, which killed more than 5,000 people and caused about $3 billion in damage. Although it is slated to receive about $2.76 billion in international aid, the economy shrank 3% with widening current account and fiscal deficits in 1999. It nevertheless met most of its macroeconomic targets. Honduras may also get relief from its $4.4 billion external debt under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Honduras The population of Honduras is predominantly of Mestizo descent and Roman Catholic faith.

Culture

Main article: Culture of Honduras

Miscellaneous topics

• List of places in Honduras
• Politics of Honduras
• Communications in Honduras
• Transportation in Honduras
• Military of Honduras
• Foreign relations of Honduras

Note: Some of these articles are based on text from the CIA World Factbook 2000 and the U.S. Department of State website.