
Honduras has a rich, multi-ethnic pre-history. A great part of that pre-history was the Mayan presence around the city of Copán in western Honduras. This major Mayan city grew and prospered for over 700 years. However, the Mayan civilization had already been in a long decline well before the Spanish came to Honduras in 1502. The Spanish colonized Honduras and all of Central America until their independence on September 15, 1821.

Honduras is the third poorest country in the Western Hemisphere and the second poorest in Central America. Over 70% of the population lives on less than $2.00 per day and 40% of this group live on less than $1.00 per day. The average unemployment rate in Honduras is more than 4.5%, but at least one third of the population is underemployed. The GDP per capita income is $4,700. Despite international and humanitarian aid efforts in the last 30 years, Honduras remains an extremely poor and polarized society where the wealth belongs only to a very small percentage of politicians and business owners.

Honduras has a population of over 8.5 million people and almost 90% of the population is mestizo (of mixed European and Native American descent). The population has grown exponentially in the last 20 years, accounting for the fact that 45% of the population is under age 18. Roughly one million Hondurans live abroad, mostly in the USA or Spain. Many are undocumented immigrants who have fled the poverty, violence, and unemployment of their country in search of work and a better life.