Olancho (department)
Encyclopedia
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
n nation of Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
is divided. It is the largest of all the departments, and Hondurans frequently point out that the department is larger than the neighboring Republic of El Salvador. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Olancho resisted government authority from Tegucigalpa to the point of causing a civil war. To this day, the old independent sentiments persist among Olanchanos, although the department's role as an agricultural producer has made it an integral part of the Honduran economy. The current president of Honduras, Porfirio Lobo, hails from the department, specifically from the city of Catacamas
Catacamas
Catacamas, Honduras is the largest municipality in Central America in terms of area.Catacamas, the "Florida City" as called by the great poet and writer Olanchano Froylán Turcios, extends over a vast plain irrigated by the Rio Guayape in the heart of the luxuriant department of Olancho.Easily...
.
The departmental capital is Juticalpa
Juticalpa, Olancho
Juticalpa is the capital of Olancho Department in Honduras. Situated in a broad river valley alongside the Rio Juticalpa, the town is the commercial center for much of Olancho's ranching and agricultural economy.-Geography:...
.
Rugged mountains rise in the western and northern portions of the department, notably the Sierra de Agalta, the Montaña de Tembladeros, and the Montaña de Botaderos. Vast pine and hardwood forests cover these mountains. Central Olancho has rolling plains, watered by the Guayape River and its affluents. These plains, sometimes called pampas due to their similarity to the vast Argentinian plains, are famous for their large cattle herds and extensive farming. The main cities, Juticalpa and Catacamas, are located there. The eastern part of the department is covered with rainforests, though the influx of impoverished, farmers and intense timber extraction have increased deforestation rates in the area. A portion of the Rio Platano Biosphere Reserve
Río Plátano Biosphere Reserve
The Río Plátano Biosphere Reserve is 5,250 km² of preserved land in the La Mosquitia region on the Caribbean coast of Honduras. Most of the land runs along the Río Plátano. The reserve has a number of endangered species and some of Honduras largest sections of forest. It has been a World...
, a tropical rainforest with diverse wildlife and declared a World Heritage site by UNESCO, straddles the border of Olancho and the neighboring departments of Gracias a Dios (department)
Gracias a Dios (department)
Gracias a Dios is one of the 18 departments into which the Central American nation of Honduras is divided. The departmental capital is Puerto Lempira; until 1975 it was Brus Laguna...
and Colón (department)
Colón (department)
Colón is one of the 18 departments into which the Central American nation of Honduras is divided. It was created in 1881. The departmental capital is Trujillo, and the other main city is Tocoa...
.
The Guayape
Guayape
Guayape is a municipality in the west of the Honduran department of Olancho, west of Salamá, south of Yocón and north of Concordia.Guayape, Is Divided Into Three Huge Territories.Some even covering the river....
River is famous for its placer gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
. First exploited by the Spaniards during the colonial period, these gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
deposits are still productive. Local men and women may be seen panning for gold in riverbanks during the dry season. Extensive gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
dredging is also underway during the dry season in much of the river
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
, including deep into the mountainous regions of the Rio Patuca (into which the Guayape
Guayape
Guayape is a municipality in the west of the Honduran department of Olancho, west of Salamá, south of Yocón and north of Concordia.Guayape, Is Divided Into Three Huge Territories.Some even covering the river....
feeds).
The Cave of Talgua
Talgua caves
Talgua Cave, , is a cave located in the Olancho Valley in the municipality of Catacamas in northeastern Honduras. The misnomer “The Cave of the Glowing Skulls” was given to the cave because of the way that light reflects off of the calcite deposits found on the skeletal remains found there...
, also known as "The Cave of the Glowing Skulls," is located near Catacamas
Catacamas
Catacamas, Honduras is the largest municipality in Central America in terms of area.Catacamas, the "Florida City" as called by the great poet and writer Olanchano Froylán Turcios, extends over a vast plain irrigated by the Rio Guayape in the heart of the luxuriant department of Olancho.Easily...
. It was used as a burial site by the native peoples, and over time, the bones left there were covered by the calcite dripping from the ceiling, giving them an eerie, sparkling appearance. Radiocarbon testing indicated that the burials were made around 900 B.C., well before the rise of the Mayans and other civilizations. The ossuary chamber was discovered in 1994 by a Peace Corps Volunteer named Timothy Berg, along with two Catacamas locals named Desiderio Reyes and Jorge Yáñez, and research is still being conducted in the area.
There is an accurate saying about Olancho known by all residents of the region that has become the unofficial motto: "Olancho es ancho para entrar, y angosto para salir." Variously translated as 'Olancho is easy to get into, and hard to get out of.', or more literally: 'Olancho is wide to enter, and narrow to leave'. True understanding of, and appreciation for, this motto takes years to develop. It has also to been said to be because of the historical violence of the department. There is another saying "Olancho: Entre si quiere, salga si puede" (literally Olancho: Enter if you want, exit if you can).
It has been indicated that the Olancho Department is one of the most violent areas in Honduras.
The department covers a total surface area of 24,351 km² and has an estimated 2005 population of 458,365 inhabitants.
Municipalities
- CampamentoCampamentoCampamento is a municipality in the south west of the Honduran department of Olancho, south of Concordia and west of Juticalpa. The municipality of Campamento is located at the entrance to Olancho, along the main highway from Tegucigalpa...
- CatacamasCatacamasCatacamas, Honduras is the largest municipality in Central America in terms of area.Catacamas, the "Florida City" as called by the great poet and writer Olanchano Froylán Turcios, extends over a vast plain irrigated by the Rio Guayape in the heart of the luxuriant department of Olancho.Easily...
- ConcordiaConcordia, OlanchoConcordia is a municipality in the south west of the Honduran department of Olancho, north of Campamento, west of Juticalpa and south of Guayape and Salamá....
- Dulce Nombre de CulmíDulce Nombre de CulmíDulce Nombre de Culmí is a municipality in the east of the Honduran department of Olancho, south east of San Esteban and north east of Catacamas. The Ríos Wuampú and Culmí pass through this municipality....
- El RosarioEl Rosario, OlanchoEl Rosario is a town and a municipality in the west of the Honduran department of Olancho. It is south-east of Yocón, north-east of Guayape and north-west of Salamá....
- Esquipulas del NorteEsquipulas del NorteEsquipulas del Norte is a municipality in the north west of the Honduran department of Olancho, east of Guata and north of Jano....
- GualacoGualacoGualaco is a municipality in the north of the Honduran department of Olancho, west of San Esteban, north of Santa Maria del Real and east of Guata....
- GuarizamaGuarizamaGuarizama is a municipality in the Honduran department of Olancho....
- GuataGuataGuata is a municipality in the north west of the Honduran department of Olancho, west of Gualaco, north of Manto and east of Jano and Esquipulas del Norte....
- GuayapeGuayapeGuayape is a municipality in the west of the Honduran department of Olancho, west of Salamá, south of Yocón and north of Concordia.Guayape, Is Divided Into Three Huge Territories.Some even covering the river....
- JanoJanoJano is a town and municipality in the north west of the Honduran department of Olancho, west of Guata, south of Esquipulas del Norte and north of Manto.Jano Fair is an American god, based on the idea of seeking education and freedom....
- JuticalpaJuticalpa, OlanchoJuticalpa is the capital of Olancho Department in Honduras. Situated in a broad river valley alongside the Rio Juticalpa, the town is the commercial center for much of Olancho's ranching and agricultural economy.-Geography:...
- La UniónLa Unión, OlanchoLa Unión is a municipality in the northwest of the Honduran department of Olancho.- Limits :La Unión is bounded to the North with Olanchito, to the South with Salamá and El Rosario, to the West with Esquipulas del Norte and Jano and to the East with Yocón and Mangulile...
- MangulileMangulileMangulile is a municipality in the north west of the Honduran department of Olancho, north of Yocón, south west of Manto and south east of Salamá....
- MantoManto, OlanchoManto is a municipality in the Honduran department of Olancho....
- PatucaPatucaPatuca is a municipality in the south of the Honduran department of Olancho, east of Juticalpa and south of Catacamas. It contains the Patuca River which is the second largest in Central America.-External links:*...
- SalamáSalamá, OlanchoSalamá is a municipality in the Honduran department of Olancho....
- San EstebanSan Esteban, OlanchoSan Esteban is a municipality in the north east of the Honduran department of Olancho, west of Dulce Nombre de Culmí, east of Gualaco and north of Catacamas....
- San Francisco de BecerraSan Francisco de BecerraSan Francisco de Becerra is a municipality in the interior of the Honduran department of Olancho, slightly to the south. It is boredered by Juticalpa in the west and Catacamas in the east....
- San Francisco de la PazSan Francisco de la PazSan Francisco de la Paz is a municipality in the centre of the Honduran department of Olancho.First known as "San Francisco Zapote" the name was changed by bishop Francisco de Paula Campoy y Pérez, for the actual name....
- Santa Maria del RealSanta Maria del RealSanta Maria del Real is a municipality in the Honduran department of Olancho....
- SilcaSilcaSilca is a municipality in the Honduran department of Olancho....
- YocónYocónYocón is a municipality in the west of the Honduran department of Olancho, north of Guayape, south of Mangulile and west of El Rosario....