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• The Republic of Nicaragua is the largest country in Central America. It is bordered by Honduras and Costa Rica. The Caribbean Sea is to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west.

• Fast Facts

  1. Capital: Managua
  2. Government: Presidential republic
  3. Population: 5,785,846 (2008 est.) Cia.gov: The World Fact Book
  4. Official Language: Spanish
  5. Currency: Córdoba (NIO)
  6. Country Code: +505
  7. Airport code: MGA (Augusto C Sandino International Airport in Managua)
  8. Located 11 degrees north of the equator
  9. Climate: Tropical in lowlands, cooler in highlands

• Brief History

  Around 6000 years ago, Nicaragua was inhabited by Paleo-Indians. Christopher Columbus was the first European to reach Nicaragua in 1502. The capital, León, was destroyed by the Momotombo volcano in 1610, and then rebuilt northwest.

  Nicaragua became an independent republic in 1838 but has had a long history of civil war between the liberal elite of León and the conservative elite of Granada. The United States has a controversial history of political involvement in Nicaragua, which resulted in an investigation of the Reagan Administration, and was known as the Iran-Contra Affair.

  Today, Nicaragua is a developing country, enjoying relative peace and a booming tourist economy.

• Related Mahalo Pages

  Pacific Ocean | Caribbean Sea | Costa Rica | Honduras | El Salvador | Grenada | Oscar Arias | Sandinistas

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