Tegucigalpa is the capital of which Central American country?

Tegucigalpa is the capital city of the Republic of Honduras. It is located on hilly terrain hemmed in by mountains, at an elevation of 3,250 feet (990 m) above sea level. Its population projection in 2020 was 1,276,738.

It was founded in 1578 on the slopes of Mount Picacho as a gold and silver mining center, and alternated with Comayagua, 35 miles (56 km) to the northwest, as the Honduran capital from 1824 to 1880, when Tegucigalpa was made the permanent capital of the republic.

The city’s principal buildings include the presidential and legislative palaces, the National University of Honduras, and an 18th-century cathedral. Industrial production, formerly small and mostly for local consumption, increased in the 1970s with the improvement of road connections. One of the few capitals in the world without a railroad, Tegucigalpa depends largely on the international airport at Toncontín, which, for the most part, is inadequate for the task.

The city’s population growth accelerated in the 1990s, contributing to water shortages, unemployment, and rising crime rates. Several times the army was ordered to monitor the streets to control criminal activity. Extreme poverty is endemic. Hurricane Mitch exacerbated the situation in 1998. Thousands of homes were destroyed, urban services were severely damaged, and tens of thousands of people were made homeless.