Honduras Cruises.

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Honduras Cruises

Honduras, republic in Central America, bounded on the north and east by the Caribbean Sea, on the south by Nicaragua, on the southwest by the Pacific Ocean and El Salvador, and on the west by Guatemala. Honduras is one of the largest Central American republics, with an area of 112,492 sq km (43,433 sq mi). The capital and largest city is Tegucigalpa.

Except for two coastal strips, one extending about 640 km (about 400 mi) along the Caribbean Sea and the other 64 km (40 mi) on the Pacific Ocean, Honduras is a plateau, consisting of broad, fertile plains broken by deep valleys, and traversed by mountain ranges in a northwestern to southwestern direction. The mountains, which are volcanic in origin, rise to maximum elevations of more than 2,800 m (9,200 ft). Most of the country’s rivers drain to the Atlantic Ocean. Navigable Atlantic rivers include the Ulúa, which drains approximately one-third of the country, and the Coco. Forests, covering 48.1 percent of the land, yield valuable hardwoods and softwoods. Fertile pasturelands provide the basis for increasingly productive dairy farming and livestock raising. Valuable mineral deposits, such as lead and zinc, are also present.

The climate of Honduras is tropical but is tempered by the higher elevations of the interior. The mean annual temperature in the interior is 21°C (70°F). The low-lying coastal regions, however, are warmer, and the humidity is oppressive; the mean annual temperature here averages 27°C (80°F). The dry season prevails from November to May; the average annual rainfall ranges from 1,000 mm (40 in) in some mountain valleys to 2,500 mm (100 in) along the northern coast.

Forests of oak and pine cover the cooler highlands, and savanna grasses cover the drier parts of Honduras. Mangrove and palms are found in the coastal regions.

Honduras has a wide variety of wildlife. Bear, deer, monkey, wolf, and coyote are numerous. The cat family includes jaguar, puma, and ocelot. A wide variety of reptiles exists, and marine and bird life abound.

The lush, tropical forests of Honduras are dwindling rapidly. In 1995, 36.8 percent of the country’s total land area was forested, but 2.3 percent (1990-1996) of the forested area disappears every year—one of the highest rates of deforestation in the world. Increased population has led to the clearing of land for farming and the farming of marginal soils in rural areas, as well as to uncontrolled development in the fringes of urban areas. All of these factors contribute to deforestation and consequently to soil erosion. A reforestation program has been hampered by rudimentary lumbering methods and poor transportation facilities.

Water pollution is another environmental concern in Honduras. Heavy metals from mining activities pollute Lake Yojoa, the country’s largest source of fresh water. Although almost all urban residents have access to safe water and sanitation, access is much lower for rural residents.

The Honduran government has designated 9.9 percent (1997) of the country’s total land area protected. This includes the Río Plátano Biosphere Reserve, about 500,000 hectares (about 1.2 million acres) in area. The site is among the last remaining tracts of humid tropical forest in Central America. However, even this reserve is threatened; it has suffered from illegal logging, agricultural intrusion, and commercial hunting. The government has ratified international environmental agreements pertaining to biodiversity, climate change, desertification, endangered species, hazardous wastes, marine dumping, ozone layer protection, tropical timber, and wetlands.

About 90 percent of the people are mestizo (persons of Spanish and Native American ancestry); the remainder are Native Americans, blacks, and whites. The population is 54 percent rural.

The population of Honduras (2001 estimate) was 6,406,052. The overall population density was 57 people per sq km (147 per sq mi), with the greatest concentrations in the small towns and villages in the northern coastal and central areas.

The capital and largest city of Honduras is Tegucigalpa (1995 estimate, 813,900), located in the south central region. The principal city and commercial center in the north is San Pedro Sula (383,900). La Ceiba (89,200) and Puerto Cortés (33,900) are among the leading Caribbean ports.

Spanish is the official language and is spoken by nearly all the Honduran people. English is spoken by some people in the north, and the Native Americans have retained their languages. Roman Catholics are 94 percent of the people; Protestants constitute a small minority.

Education in Honduras is free and compulsory for children between the ages of 7 and 12. The government has pledged to raise the literacy rate, which stands at 83.7 percent. In 1994, 1.01 million pupils were enrolled in 8,114 primary schools. However, only 32 percent of secondary school-age children were enrolled in school.

The National Autonomous University of Honduras (1847), in Tegucigalpa, is the major institution of higher learning. In 1994 enrollment in higher education numbered 54,100 students. The interaction of both Native American and Spanish strains in Honduran cultural history is clearly visible in the architecture. Many colonial buildings show strong Native American influences combined with baroque, Renaissance, and Moorish styles imported by the Spanish.


With the exception of a few isolated Native American settlements where ancient languages and customs have been preserved, Honduras is primarily a Spanish culture today. The marimba is the most popular instrument and forms the core of many bands. Native folklore, folk music, and dances are limited, and artistic activity is concentrated around the School of Fine Arts in Comayagua, the old capital. In northwestern Honduras lies Copán, a ceremonial center of the Old Empire of the Maya and one of the most important archaeological sites in the Western Hemisphere.

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