El Salvador, officially the Republic of El Salvador, is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south by the Pacific Ocean. El Salvador's capital and largest city is San Salvador. The country's population in 2024 was estimated to be 6 million according to a government census.
Among the
Olmec presence around the first millennium BC. In the beginning of the 16th century, the Spanish Empire conquered the Central American territory, incorporating it into the Viceroyalty of New Spain ruled from Mexico City. However the Viceroyalty of New Spain had little to no influence in the daily affairs of the isthmus, which was colonized in 1524. In 1609, the area was declared the Captaincy General of Guatemala by the Spanish, which included the territory that would become El Salvador until its independence from Spain in 1821. It was forcibly incorporated into the First Mexican Empire, then seceded, joining the Federal Republic of Central America in 1823. When the federation dissolved in 1841, El Salvador became a sovereign state, then formed a short-lived union with Honduras and Nicaragua called the Greater Republic of Central America, which lasted from 1896 to 1898. (Full article...
farming village.
The ancient Maya site of Joya de Cerén is located in the Zapotitán Valley, 36 kilometers northwest of San Salvador, El Salvador. It is often referred to as the "Pompeii of the Americas", in comparison to the famed Ancient Roman ruins.
This site is known for the excellent preservation of a
UNESCO World Heritage List in 1993 for its archeological importance, and is a major tourist attraction in El Salvador. (Full article...
