El Salvador

Republic of El Salvador República de El Salvador (Spanish)
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: Dios, Unión, Libertad "God, Union, Liberty"
Anthem: Himno Nacional de El Salvador "National Anthem of El Salvador"
Capital and largest city	San Salvador 13°42′N 89°12′W / 13.700°N 89.200°W / 13.700; -89.200
Official languages	Spanish[a]
Recognized languages	Nawat[b]
Ethnic groups [2]	86.3% Mestizo (mixed White and Indigenous) 12.7% White 0.2% Indigenous 0.1% Black 0.6% other
Religion (2017)[3]	84.1% Christianity 44.9% Catholicism 37.1% Protestantism 2.1% other Christian 15.2% no religion 0.7% other
Demonym(s)	Salvadoran
Government	Unitary presidential republic
• President	Nayib Bukele
• Vice President	Félix Ulloa
Legislature	Legislative Assembly
Independence
• Declared from Spain	15 September 1821
• Declared from the First Mexican Empire	1 July 1823
• Declared from the Federal Republic of Central America	30 January 1841
• International recognition[4]	18 February 1841
Area
• Total	21,041 km2 (8,124 sq mi) (148th)
• Water (%)	1.5
Population
• 2024 census	6,029,976[5] (109th)
• Density	324.4/km2 (840.2/sq mi) (26th)
GDP (PPP)	2024 estimate
• Total	$84.220 billion[6] (107th)
• Per capita	$13,173[6] (114th)
GDP (nominal)	2024 estimate
• Total	$35.848 billion[6] (104th)
• Per capita	$5,607[6] (108th)
Gini (2022)	38.8[7] medium inequality
HDI (2022)	0.674[8] medium (127th)
Currency	United States dollar (USD; since 2001)[c] Bitcoin (BTC; since September 2021)[10][11]
Time zone	UTC−6 (CST)
Drives on	Right
Calling code	+503[d]
ISO 3166 code	SV
Internet TLD	.sv
^ The official language of El Salvador is established in the Article 62 of the Constitution of 1983 to be Castilian.[1] ^ English is also an academic language in public schools. For more information, see Languages of El Salvador. ^ The U.S. dollar is the currency in use.[needs update] Financial information can be expressed in U.S. dollars and in Salvadoran colóns, but the colón is out of circulation.[9] ^ Telephone companies (market share): Tigo (45%), Claro (25%), Movistar (24%), Digicel (5.5%), Red (0.5%).

El Salvador,^[a] officially the Republic of El Salvador,^[b] is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south by the Pacific Ocean. El Salvador's capital and largest city is San Salvador. The country's population in 2024 was estimated to be 6 million according to a government census.^[5]

Among the Mesoamerican nations that historically controlled the region are the Mayans,^[12] and then the Cuzcatlecs.^[13] Archaeological monuments also suggest an early Olmec presence around the first millennium BC.^[14] In the beginning of the 16th century, the Spanish Empire conquered the Central American territory, incorporating it into the Viceroyalty of New Spain ruled from Mexico City. However the Viceroyalty of New Spain had little to no influence in the daily affairs of the isthmus, which was colonized in 1524. In 1609, the area was declared the Captaincy General of Guatemala by the Spanish, which included the territory that would become El Salvador until its independence from Spain in 1821. It was forcibly incorporated into the First Mexican Empire, then seceded, joining the Federal Republic of Central America in 1823. When the federation dissolved in 1841, El Salvador became a sovereign state, then formed a short-lived union with Honduras and Nicaragua called the Greater Republic of Central America, which lasted from 1896 to 1898.^[15][16][17]

From the late 19th to the mid-20th century, El Salvador endured chronic political and economic instability characterized by coups, revolts, and a succession of authoritarian rulers. Persistent socioeconomic inequality and civil unrest culminated in the Salvadoran Civil War from 1979 to 1992, fought between the military-led government backed by the United States, and a coalition of left-wing guerrilla groups. The conflict ended with the Chapultepec Peace Accords. This negotiated settlement established a multiparty constitutional republic, which remains in place to this day. During the civil war and afterwards, large numbers of Salvadorans emigrated to the United States. From 1980 through 2008, nearly one million Salvadorans immigrated to the United States, such that by 2008, they were the sixth largest immigrant group in the US.^[18]

El Salvador's economy has historically been dominated by agriculture, beginning with the Spanish taking control of the indigenous cacao crop in the 16th century, with production centred in Izalco, along with balsam from the ranges of La Libertad and Ahuachapán. This was followed by a boom in use of the indigo plant in the 19th century, mainly for its use as a dye.^[19][20] Thereafter the focus shifted to coffee, which by the early 20th century accounted for 90% of export earnings.^[21][22] El Salvador has since reduced its dependence on coffee and embarked on diversifying its economy by opening up trade and financial links and expanding the manufacturing sector.^[23] The colón, the currency of El Salvador since 1892, was replaced by the United States dollar in 2001.^[24] As of 2019 economic improvements had led to El Salvador experiencing the lowest level of income inequality among nearby countries. Among 77 countries included in a 2021 study, El Salvador had one of the least complex economies for doing business.^[25]

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