Honduras (hɒnˈdʊərəs), officially the
Republic of Honduras (
link=no reˈpuβlika ðe onˈduɾas), is a republic in
Central America. It was at times referred to as
Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from
British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of
Belize. The country is bordered to the west by
Guatemala, to the southwest by
El Salvador, to the southeast by
Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Ocean at the
Gulf of Fonseca, and to the north by the
Gulf of Honduras, a large inlet of the
Caribbean Sea.
Honduras was home to several important indigenous cultures, most notably the
Maya. Much of the country was
conquered by Spain which introduced its now predominant language and many of its customs in the sixteenth century. It became independent in 1821 and has been a republic since the end of Spanish rule.
The area of Honduras is about 112,492 km² and the population exceeds eight million. Its northern portions are part of the
Western Caribbean Zone. Honduras is most notable for production of minerals, coffee, tropical fruit, sugar cane and recently for exporting clothing to the international market.
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.
Columbus is traditionally quoted as having written
"Gracias a Dios que hemos salido de esas Honduras" (English: "Thank God we have come out of those depths") while along the northeastern coast. However, William Davidson notes that there is no form of this quotation in the primary documents of Columbus's voyage, and that it in fact comes from accounts over a century later.
Honduras from
fondura, a Leonese language word meaning
anchorage which is one of the first words for the region to appear on a map in the second decade of the 16th century applied to the bay of Trujillo. It was not until the end of the 16th century that
Honduras was used for the whole province. Prior to 1580,
Honduras referred to the eastern part of the province, and
Higueras referred to the western part.
Another early name is
Guaymuras, revived as the name for the
political dialogue in 2009 that took place in Honduras as opposed to Costa Rica.