Municipality of Langue
Langue is a municipality in the Department of Valle of Honduras.
Etymology
The word «Langue» has origins in both Nahuatl and Lenca languages, due to its formation from a prefix or suffix of Mexican and Lenca origin. It means «Place of Canes and Reeds.» The indigenous roots of the word Langue, as well as its population, are evident since it originated as a town of Lenca Indians, later Hispanized during the colonial period.
History
The municipality of Langue covers an area of 135.3 square kilometers, distributed among 216 localities, 5 villages, and 216 hamlets within the 156.6 square kilometers that the Valle Department extends. Langue represents 8.7% of the total territory.
The municipality of Langue borders the municipalities of Aramecina, Curaren (in the Francisco Morazán Department), and San Francisco de Coray to the north; Nacaome and Goascoran to the south; San Francisco de Coray to the east; Coray and Nacaome again to the south; and Goascoran and Aramecina again to the west.
Langue is an ancient town in the Valle Department. Testimonies of its existence date back to 1591 when the land title of Nuestra Señora de Candelaria was renewed to establish the town of San Antonio de Langue. During the colonial period, it was common to combine indigenous toponyms with the names of saints.
Indigenous Settlements: The indigenous population that constituted Langue from its inception was settled in four different locations: Los Amates, Nuestra Señora de Caridad Ozacualpa de Langua y tique, Pueblo Viejo (located in the village of Concepción de Maria), and finally, the present-day location.
Foundation
The exact date of the city’s foundation is uncertain. On March 7, 1950, through Agreement #101, which came into effect on September 15 of the same year, the government of Dr. Juan Manuel Galvez Duron elevated Langue from a town to a city.
The town was founded due to the interest of Spanish settlers in the nearby gold mines. It was originally established as a mining town and is one of the oldest municipalities in the country. In the 1791 population census, it was a town in the curacy of Goascorán and belonged to the Major Municipality of Tegucigalpa at that time.
This population has been relocated several times. First, it was established in the area of «Los Amates,» then in the Valle de Candelaria, but due to the unhealthy climate, it was moved to the place known as Pueblo Viejo and finally to its current location. In the Political Division of 1896, it was one of the municipalities that formed the Goascorán District, belonging to Choluteca. On September 15, 1950, it was granted the title of city.
The municipality has a strong economic activity, ranking third in the department after San Lorenzo and Nacaome.
Limits
- North: Municipalities of Aramecina and Curaren
- South: Municipality of Nacaome
- East: Municipality of San Francisco de Coray
- West: Municipalities of Goascorán and Aramecina
Transportation
Land
Currently, there is the Langueños bus company with routes from Langue to Tegucigalpa, Progreso, Choluteca, and the borders with El Amatillo (border with El Salvador) and Guasaule (border with Nicaragua).
Currently, Langue also has «Los Rapiditos» buses from ETIVSA Company by Don Francisco Reyes with routes from Langue to Tegucigalpa, and TACA Company buses with routes from Langue to Nacaome.
Flora and Fauna
The flora is scarce, but we can appreciate what little we have mainly in the high areas of the villages where the climate is cooler. There is a variety of domestic, pack, working, and wild animals within the municipality.
Economy
Agriculture: maize, millet, beans, rice, etc.
Livestock: artisanal pig and cattle farming; Langue is the largest producer of hammocks and lassos in the country.
There is a municipal market, clothing stores, bakeries, a Savings Cooperative, a Consumer Cooperative, convenience stores, multiple services, beauty salons, cyber cafes, cafeterias, police station, tailors, pharmacies, clinics, Evangelical and Catholic churches.
Hondutel, warehouses, telephone, mobile services, National Postal Office. It also has electricity and mining production. Notable mines include El Chaparral, El Cuyal, Apazala, and San Félix.
Civil society includes educational associations.
Education
The municipal education district #7, which corresponds to Langue, has 69 educational centers, including 33 primary schools, 5 basic centers, 21 kindergartens, 6 IHNFA centers, 3 PROHECOS schools, 1 private center «CRISMA,» and secondary education is provided by the John F Kennedy Technical Accounting Institute.
Communications
The municipality has a paved road that connects to the Pan-American Highway, and some streets in the town center are also paved (currently).
Traditions and Customs
- Languena Traditional Fair (January 14-20)
- Easter: The Catholic community celebrates Easter week with devotion, including masses, processions, dramatizations, the creation of carpets, and the use of matracas (ratchets) instead of bells during that week.
- Palm Sunday: Special celebrations dedicated as posthumous tributes to deceased children (angelitos) take place 7 and 30 days after their passing.
- The Descent of San Antonio: Perhaps the most prominent and oldest Langue tradition, it is a solemn religious event celebrated every year on June 12, the eve of the Patron Saint’s Fair.
- Day of the Dead: The urban and rural population of the municipality, as well as people from other parts of the country, gather early in the morning from November 1 to November 2. Endless caravans head to the cemetery to stay close to their departed loved ones, bringing prayers, flowers, candles, and offering to comfort their spirits by decorating and painting tombs, mausoleums, and gravestones that jealously guard the testimony of their great love.
- Christmas: Urban and rural residents of the municipality gather with their families to celebrate Christmas Eve (the birth of Baby Jesus) on December 24, and in the early hours of the next day, hundreds of neighbors from villages and hamlets come to the city to visit their relatives and friends.
They visit «Nativity Scenes» and entertainment venues. During Christmas, parishioners attend their preferred churches, where they participate in liturgical and pastoral activities. Later, they enjoy dinners with abundant gastronomy, favorite beverages, and popular dances, giving free rein to the joy that the birth of the Redeemer brings.
