Honduras was home to several important Mesoamerican cultures, most notably the Maya, before the Spanish colonization in the sixteenth century. The Spanish introduced Catholicism and the now predominant Spanish language, along with numerous customs that have blended with the indigenous culture. Honduras became independent in 1821 and has since been a republic, although it has consistently endured much social strife and political instability, and remains one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere. In 1960, the northern part of what was the Mosquito Coast was transferred from Nicaragua to Honduras by the International Court of Justice.
The nation's economy is primarily agricultural, making it especially vulnerable to natural disasters such as Hurricane Mitch in 1998. The lower class is primarily agriculturally based while wealth is concentrated in the country's urban centers. Honduras has a Human Development Index of 0.625, classifying it as a nation with medium development. When adjusted for income inequality, its Inequality-adjusted Human Development Index is 0.443. (Full article...)
Honduras has been inhabited by a number of indigenous peoples, the most powerful of which, until the ninth century CE, were the Maya. The western-central part of Honduras was inhabited by the Lenca while other indigenous peoples settled in the northeast and coastal regions. These peoples had their conflicts but maintained commercial relationships with each other and with other populations as distant as Panama and Mexico.
On July 30, 1502, Christopher Columbus first saw Honduran soil and claimed the territory in the name of his sovereigns, Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile. He named the area "Honduras" (meaning "depths") for the deep water off the coast. In 1523 the first expeditionary forces arrived under the command of Gil Gonzales de Avila, who hoped to rule the new territory. In 1524, Cristobal de Olid arrived with the same intent on behalf of Hernán Cortés. Olid founded the colony Triunfo de la Cruz and tried to establish his own independent government. When Cortes learned of this, he sent a new expedition, headed by Francisco de las Casas. Olid managed to capture his rivals, but was betrayed by his men and assassinated. Cortes himself then traveled to Honduras and established his government in the city of Trujillo before returning to Mexico in 1526. Honduras formed part of the colonial era Captaincy General of Guatemala. The cities of Comayagua and Tegucigalpa developed as early mining centers. (Full article...)
Image 9After the 2009 coup d'état, the military presence in the streets began to be more common. (from History of Honduras)
Image 10The railroad transportation suffered a lot of economic issues and disadvantages during the 2000s, it was not until 2010 passenger trains where reactivated. (from History of Honduras)
Image 11La Merced plaza of Comayagua after the independence from Spain. (from History of Honduras)
Image 21Sir Salvador Moncada. Honduran pharmacologyst. (from Culture of Honduras)
Image 22First coat of arms of Honduras given by the emperor Charles I of Spain an 5th of the Holy Roman empire. By the time of the colonial era Honduras suffered a demographic change due the arrival of Spanish immigrants (from History of Honduras)
Image 40The church of la Merced in the city of Comayagua was the first Cathedral of Honduras in 1550 and is the oldest Honduran church still standing. (from History of Honduras)
Image 41Painting depicting the chief Lempira fighting against a conquistador (from History of Honduras)
Image 54Diablos Negros, is a Honduran hard Rock band active since the 1980s. (from Culture of Honduras)
Image 55Mayan representative hieroglyphic of the Yax Kuk Mo Dynasty that later would become the emblem of the Kingdom of "Oxwitik" also known as Copán. (from History of Honduras)
Image 79Train station in La Ceiba during the 1920s. The locomotives were one of the main means of transportation in Honduras during the 20th century. (from History of Honduras)