Municipalities of Honduras facts for kids

Honduras is divided into 18 main areas called departments. Think of these like states or provinces. Each department is then split into smaller areas called municipalities, and there are 298 of them! In Honduras, municipalities are special because they have their own local governments. This means each municipality gets to elect its own mayor, who is like the head of the local government. This is different from departments, which have governors who are appointed, not elected.

For keeping track of information, municipalities are further divided into even smaller parts:

• There are 3,731 aldeas (which are like villages or rural areas).
• These aldeas are then divided into 27,969 caserios (even smaller settlements).
• At the very smallest level, some caserios are broken down into 3,336 barrios or colonias (neighborhoods).

How Honduras is Organized

Honduras has a clear system for how its land is divided and governed. It's like a pyramid, with the country at the top, then departments, and then municipalities.

Departments: The Big Areas

Honduras has 18 departments. Each department has a main city called its capital. This capital city is where the department's government is located.

Municipalities: Local Governments in Action

The municipalities are very important because they are where people have a direct say in their local leaders. When you hear about a "mayor" in Honduras, they are in charge of a municipality. They work on things like local services, roads, and community projects.

      Departmental Capital       National Capital and Departmental Capital

Here are some examples of important municipalities and their departments:

• La Ceiba is a big city in the Atlántida department. It's known for its beautiful Caribbean coast.
• Choluteca is the capital of the Choluteca department, located in the southern part of Honduras.
• Comayagua is a historic city and the capital of the Comayagua department, once the capital of Honduras.
• Santa Rosa de Copán is the capital of the Copán department, famous for its coffee production.
• San Pedro Sula is a major city in the Cortés department and an important economic center.
• Yuscarán is the capital of the El Paraíso department.
• Distrito Central is where Tegucigalpa, the capital city of all Honduras, is located. It's in the Francisco Morazán department.
• Puerto Lempira is the capital of the Gracias a Dios department, located in the remote La Mosquitia region.
• La Esperanza is the capital of the Intibucá department.
• Roatán is the capital of the Bay Islands department, a popular tourist destination.
• La Paz is the capital of the La Paz department.
• Gracias is the capital of the Lempira department, with a rich history.
• Ocotepeque is the capital of the Ocotepeque department, near the borders with El Salvador and Guatemala.
• Juticalpa is the capital of the Olancho department, the largest department in Honduras.
• Santa Bárbara is the capital of the Santa Bárbara department.
• Nacaome is the capital of the Valle department, located near the Pacific coast.
• Yoro is the capital of the Yoro department.

This map shows all the municipalities of Honduras. Each color represents a different department, and you can see how each department is divided into many smaller municipalities.

Images for kids

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  Tegucigalpa, the capital of Honduras.

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  San Pedro Sula.

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  La Ceiba.