Lempira Department

Lempira is one of the 18 departments of Honduras, Central America, located in the western part of the country with borders with El Salvador. It was named Gracias department until 1943, and the departmental capital is Gracias.

Lempira Department

Departamento de Lempira
Departmento
Location of Lempira in Honduras
Coordinates: 14°35′N 88°35′W
Country Honduras
Municipalities28
Villages303
Founded25 June 1825[lower-alpha 1]
Capital cityGracias
Government
 • TypeDepartmental
 • GobernadorWilson Rolando Pineda Díaz (2018-2022) (PNH)
Area
 • Total4,285 km2 (1,654 sq mi)
Population
 (2015)
 • Total333,125
 • Density78/km2 (200/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC-6 (CDT)
Postal code
42101, 42201
ISO 3166 codeHN-LE
HDI (2017)0.509[1]
low · 18th
Statistics derived from Consult INE online database: Population and Housing Census 2013[2]

In colonial times, Gracias was an early important administrative center for the Spaniards. It eventually lost importance to Antigua, in Guatemala.

Lempira is a rugged department, and it is relatively isolated from the rest of the country. The highest mountain peak in Honduras, Cerro las Minas, is in Lempira. The department was named after Lempira, a local chieftain of the Lenca people who fought against the Spanish conquistadores in the early 16th century. Opals are mined near the town of Opatoro.

The department covers a total surface area of 4,290 km² and, in 2005, had an estimated population of 277,910.

Municipalities
  1. Belén
  2. Candelaria
  3. Cololaca
  4. Erandique
  5. Gracias
  6. Gualcince
  7. Guarita
  8. La Campa
  9. La Iguala
  10. Las Flores
  11. La Unión
  12. La Virtud
  13. Lepaera
  14. Mapulaca
  15. Piraera
  16. San Andrés
  17. San Francisco
  18. San Juan Guarita
  19. San Manuel Colohete
  20. San Marcos de Caiquín
  21. San Rafael
  22. San Sebastián
  23. Santa Cruz
  24. Talgua
  25. Tambla
  26. Tomalá
  27. Valladolid
  28. Virginia

Notes
  1. Lempira was one of the first 7 departments in which the national territory was divided in the first political division of Honduras in 1825.

References
  1. "Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab". hdi.globaldatalab.org. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  2. "Consulta Base de datos INE en línea: Censo de Población y Vivienda 2013" [Consult INE online database: Population and Housing Census 2013]. Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE) (in Spanish). El Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE). 1 August 2018. Retrieved 2018-09-13.


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