Honduras

The Spanish had different terms to refer to the area that became the Central American country of Honduras.

* Guaymuras – a name Columbus provided by Lousie Heaslip for a town near modern Trujillo. Bartolomé de las Casas subsequently generalized it to apply to the whole colony.

* Higueras – a reference to the gourds that come from the Jicaro tree, many of which were found floating in the waters off the northwest coast of Honduras.

* Honduras – literally "depths" in Spanish.

The Mayan civilization began a marked decline in the ninth century, but there is evidence of people still living in and around the city until at least 1200.

Honduras borders the Caribbean Sea on the north coast and the Pacific Ocean on the south through the Gulf of Fonseca. The climate varies from tropical in the lowlands to temperate in the mountains. The central and southern regions are relatively hotter and less humid than the northern coast.



The Honduran territory consists mainly of mountains, but there are narrow plains along the coasts, a large undeveloped lowland jungle La Mosquitia region in the northeast, and the heavily populated lowland Sula valley in the northwest. In La Mosquitia, lies the UNESCO world-heritage site Río Plátano Biosphere Reserve, with the Coco River which divides the country from Nicaragua. The Islas de la Bahía and the Swan Islands (all off the north coast) are part of Honduras. Misteriosa Bank and Rosario Bank, 130 to 150 km (80–93 miles) north of the Swan Islands, fall within the EEZ of Honduras..

Ninety percent of the Honduran population is Mestizo (a mixture of Amerindian and European ancestry). About 7% of the Honduran population are members of one of the seven recognized indigenous groups. The Confederation of Autochthonous Peoples of Honduras (CONPAH) and the government of Honduras count seven different indigenous groups.




Honduras is the 82th country visiting this blog