El Salvador

Official name: Republic of El Salvador
Also known as: República de El Salvador (Spanish)

El Salvador Map OutlineCapital: San Salvador
Total Area: 21,041 km² (8,124 mi²)
Approximate population: 6,354,418
Location: Central America
Languages: Spanish
Religions: Roman Catholic, Protestant
Currency: US Dollar (USD; since 2001), Bitcoin (BTC; since September 2021)
Organizations: United Nations
Maritime boundaries: Gulf of Fonseca
Border countries (2): Guatemala 199 km, Honduras 391 km.
Coastline: North Pacific Ocean 307 km

14 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento):
Ahuachapan, Cabanas, Chalatenango, Cuscatlan, La Libertad, La Paz, La Union, Morazan, San Miguel, San Salvador, San Vicente, Santa Ana, Sonsonate, Usulutan.

Cities

  • San Salvador is the capital and largest city of El Salvador, approximately in the center of the country in a valley near the base of the San Salvador volcano. The city has a long history, with origins dating back to the Spanish conquest of the Pipil tribes.
  • La Libertad is El Salvador's surfing beach
  • San Francisco Gotera is a small city in Eastern El Salvador
  • San Miguel, San Miguel department is the third largest city in El Salvador and center of agriculture and production. It is less cosmopolitan than the capital San Salvador in the West but the surrounding areas of San Miguel are very beautiful with many beaches around the city.
  • Santa Ana, Santa Ana is the second largest city of El Salvador and a very important one in terms of agriculture and coffee production (coffee plantations, called fincas, cover much of the surrounding land outside of town and up the hills).
  • Santa Tecla claims to be the country's second largest city, though it's really just a rather ordinary suburb of San Salvador
  • Suchitoto is an important tourist destination partly due to its well-conserved colonial architecture and cobblestone roads that provide a sense of Spanish colonial living.

Natural resources: hydropower, geothermal power, petroleum, arable land.