El Salvador

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El Salvador

Like all former Spanish colonies in the new world, Spanish is the official language of El Salvador. This nation has gone through a lot of political turmoil over the centuries, but a new civilian government elected in 2009 is improving living standards. The original native people now represent only one percent of the population, as most people are now of mixed ancestry. The cosmopolitan capital city of San Salvador has over two million inhabitants, many of them immigrants from many countries. The adoption of the dollar as legal tender alongside the local currency a few years ago has resulted in El Salvador becoming more Americanized than neighboring countries.

5 Facts You Might Not Know

Unlike other Central American nations, El Salvador does not have a Caribbean coastline. Although not directly affected by the frequent Caribbean hurricanes, the country does get hurricanes along the Pacific coast. With growing tourism, the beaches along the La Libertad area on the east side of the country have become a popular surfing spot.

El Salvador is the smallest country in Central America. The country is divided into 14 departments, the same as states or provinces in other countries.

Cerro El Pital is the highest peak in El Salvador, reaching almost 9,000 feet and has received snow at least once. The country has a long history of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, with some dormant volcanoes having large lakes on their crater.

Of the eight species of sea turtles in the entire world, four of them lay their eggs in Salvadorean beaches. El Salvador has one of the most diverse ecosystems in the world, with over one thousand species of butterflies living there.

The original native Maya name of El Salvador is Cuscatlan. The Spanish conquerors decided to name the country El Salvador. El Salvador means The Savior in Spanish.