Morazán () is a department of

El Salvador El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de 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 ...

. Located in the northeast part of the country, its capital is San Francisco Gotera. It covers a total surface area of 1,447 km² and has a population of more than 199,500.

History

Gotera was made a department in 1875, with its capital at Osicala. On February 8, 1877, Gotera was made the capital. The department changed its name from Gotera to Morazán on March 14, 1877. Morazán was a major stronghold of the guerrilla movement during the 1979-1992 civil war. The infamous El Mozote massacre took place in this department in the village of El Mozote on December 11, 1981, when Salvadoran armed forces killed an estimated 900 civilians in an anti-guerrilla campaign. Originally dismissed by the Salvadoran and United States governments as an invention of anti-government

propaganda Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...

, the massacre was confirmed in the early 1990s through

exhumation Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

of bodies buried at the site. A museum commemorating the

Salvadoran civil war The Salvadoran Civil War ( es, guerra civil de El Salvador) was a twelve year period of civil war in El Salvador that was fought between the government of El Salvador and the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN), a coalition or ...

, the Museum of the Revolution, was established in the municipality of Perquín.

Agriculture

Among the agricultural products that stand out are the basic grains, sugar cane, henequen, grass, orchard plants, bananas, cocoa, and coffee. Livestock cultivation of cattle, horses, donkeys and sheep is also common.

Municipalities

Arambala Arambala is a municipality (''municipio'') in the Morazán Department of El Salvador El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is b ...

# Cacaopera # Chilanga # Corinto # Delicias de Concepción # El Divisadero # El Rosario # Gualococti # Guatajiagua # Joateca # Jocoaitique # Jocoro # Lolotiquillo # Meanguera # Osicala # Perquín # San Carlos # San Fernando # San Francisco Gotera # San Isidro # San Simón # Sensembra # Sociedad #

Torola Torola is a municipality in the Morazán department Morazán () is a department of El Salvador. Located in the northeast part of the country, its capital is San Francisco Gotera. It covers a total surface area of 1,447 km² and has a ...

# Yamabal # Yoloaiquín

Geography

Rio Sapo

The Sapo River is an

ecotourism Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving responsible travel (using sustainable transport) to natural areas, conserving the environment, and improving the well-being of the local people. Its purpose may be to educate the traveler, to provide fund ...

destination whose turquoise-colored waters have their source in the heights of the north of Morazán. The Sapo River is reached by the highway that drives from Joateca to

. 1 km. after the bridge there is a deviation with access to housing operated by Prodetur.

Grotto of Corinto

Located at 48 kilometers from San Francisco Gotera, is the

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...

of Corinto and a kilometer and a half to the northeast is located the " La Gruta del Espíritu Santo" (The Holy Spirit

Grotto A grotto is a natural or artificial cave used by humans in both modern times and antiquity, and historically or prehistorically. Naturally occurring grottoes are often small caves near water that are usually flooded or often flooded at high t ...

). The grotto's walls of talpetate contain a series of

petroglyph A petroglyph is an image created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, or abrading, as a form of rock art. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions ...

Perquín

The village of Perquín was founded by

Lenca The Lenca or Lepawiran "people of the jaguar" are from present day southwest Honduras and eastern El Salvador in Central America. They once spoke many Dialects such as Chilanga, Putun, Kotik etc. Although there were different dialects, they un ...

tribes before European settlement. It is located at 29 kilometers to the north of San Francisco Gotera. It is the site of El Salvador's Museum of The Revolution. It is also the site of the Deadman's Plain, the Bailadero del Diablo, La Cascada del Perol. CHILANGA-------- Chilanga, is located 2 kilometers to the north of San Francisco Gotera. And is also one of the municipalities with more importance in the department. With a population of over 11,000 people it's also one of the more grown town in population. The Center of Chilanga has a public school"Dr David Turcios", a park, Catholic Church, city hall, Health Center , local court, Police precinct, Local soccer team Stadium, and many local businesses places. Chilanga's fireworks (cohetes de Don Ciro) are popular and famous in the entire region and part of the East of the country.

External links

Legislative Information (in Spanish)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morazan Department Departments of El Salvador States and territories established in 1875