Background:

Part of Spain's vast empire in the New World, Honduras became an independent nation in 1821. After two and one-half decades of mostly military rule, a freely elected civilian government came to power in 1982. Until the arrival of the Spanish in the 1400's Honduras was part of the Mayan civilization. Honduras is primarily a Spanish culture today, with the exception of a few isolated Native American settlements where ancient languages and customs have been preserved. Much of the art and culture today is a blend of Spanish and Native American styles. Honduras produces a variety of handcrafts, most notably carved wood boxes and furniture, woven baskets, jade jewelry, and ceramics.

• Population: 6,823,568
• Ethnic Groups: Arabmestizo 90%, Amerindian 7%, black 2%, white 1%
• Religions: Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant minority

Geography:

• Area: total: 112,090 sq km. water: 200 sq km, land: 111,890 sq km
• Borders: Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua
• Climate: subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains
• Terrain: mostly mountains in interior, narrow coastal plains

• Ministry of Tourism
• Honduras Embassy, USA
• Honduras Newspaper

• Industries: sugar, coffee, textiles, clothing, wood products

• Imports: machinery and transport equipment, industrial raw materials, chemical products, fuels, foodstuffs

• Exports: coffee, bananas, shrimp, lobster, meat; zinc, lumber