Government Honduras
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Honduras
conventional short form: Honduras
local long form: Republica de Honduras
local short form: Honduras
Government type:
democratic constitutional republic
Capital:
name: Tegucigalpa
geographic coordinates: 14 06 N, 87 13 W
time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC during Standard
Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins second Sunday in March; ends
first Sunday in November; note - these new dates become effective in
2007
Administrative divisions:
18 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Atlantida,
Choluteca, Colon, Comayagua, Copan, Cortes, El Paraiso, Francisco
Morazan, Gracias a Dios, Intibuca, Islas de la Bahia, La Paz,
Lempira, Ocotepeque, Olancho, Santa Barbara, Valle, Yoro
Independence:
15 September 1821 (from Spain)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 15 September (1821)
Constitution:
11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982; amended 1995
Legal system:
rooted in Roman and Spanish civil law with increasing influence of
English common law; recent judicial reforms include abandoning
Napoleonic legal codes in favor of the oral adversarial system;
accepts ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal and compulsory