Profile
Background and figures as recorded in the CIA World Factbook.
Once part of Spain's vast empire in the New World, Honduras became an independent nation in 1821. After two and a 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 Marxist Nicaraguan Government and an ally to Salvadoran Government forces fighting leftist guerrillas. Hurricane Mitch devastated the country in 1998, killing about 5,600 people and causing approximately $2 billion in damage.
- Capital
- Tegucigalpa
- Government
- presidential republic
- Population
- 9,529,188
- Area
- 112,090 sq km
- Location
- Central America, bordering the Caribbean Sea, between Guatemala and Nicaragua and bordering the Gulf of Fonseca (North Pacific Ocean), between El Salv…
- Climate
- subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains
- Natural resources
- timber; gold; silver; copper; lead; zinc…
- Languages
- Spanish (official); Amerindian dialects
- Religions
- Evangelical 55%; Roman Catholic 33.4%; none 10.1%; unspecified 1.5%
- Independence
- 15 September 1821 (from Spain)
- Administrative divisions
- 18 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Atlántida, Choluteca, Colon, Comayagua, Copan, Cortes, El Parai…
- Currency
- lempiras (HNL)
- Export partners
- USA 49%; Nicaragua 8%; El Salvador 7%; Guatemala 5%…
- Import partners
- USA 36%; China 14%; Guatemala 8%; Mexico 6%…
Source: CIA World Factbook — a work of the US government, in the public domain