Municipality of Ojojona
It is a municipality in the department of Francisco Morazán, in the Republic of Honduras. In the first political division of the state of Honduras in 1825, it appeared as a parish in the Tegucigalpa district.
By 1582, the indigenous village of Oxoxona was already mentioned in the report of Governor Alonso de Contreras Guevara, stating that it had forty-six tribute-paying indigenous people under the encomienda of Joanes de Celaya.
General Information of Ojojona
- Territorial area: 259.64 km2
- Population: 8,156 inhabitants (2012)
- Date of creation as a municipality: 1889
- Feria patronal: January 20, Feast of San Sebastián; June 24; November 30.
- Villages and hamlets: 8 villages and 105 hamlets.
- Elevation: 1,375 meters above sea level.
Origin and Meaning of the Name Ojojona
According to Don Alberto Membreño, Oxoxona (a word of Lenca origin) means «Greenish Water.»
Studies on indigenous toponyms in Honduras explain the grammatical structure of the name as follows: «…In Velazco’s geography, it is written as Xoxonal, and the town still pronounces it as Jojona. It means ‘greenish water’ in Mexican. It is composed of xoxonqui, greenish, and alta agua…» (1994, p.162)
In the early chronicles of the colonial period, the place was referred to as Xoxonal, Xoxona, or Joxone. At the beginning of the 18th century, the documentation refers to Ojojona and San Juan de Ojojona, names that are still used today. It is likely that over time these descriptors were «transformed» to Ojojona.
History
Founded in 1579 by Spanish miners engaged in the gold and silver mining activities in the area. In 1739, land titles of the town of Ojojona already appear; in the population census of 1791, it is listed as the head of a curacy, and in the Political Territorial Division of 1889, it was a municipality of the Sabanagrande District.
The Historic Center of the municipal seat of San Juan de Ojojona was declared a National Monument by the National Congress of the Republic through Decree No. 155-96, published in the official gazette La Gaceta in November 1996.
Since this declaration, the protection and valorization of its historical and cultural heritage have gained national interest. The authorities, with the support of international cooperation, have developed programs and projects for its revaluation, thus contributing to the development of more than 5,266 residents in rural areas and 2,792 in urban areas (INE, 2001).
Economic Activity
Cultivation of basic grains, sugarcane, coffee, and vegetables; raising of cattle, horses, sheep, and pigs; poultry farming.
Infrastructure
- Health: 1 CESAMO and 2 CESAR.
- Education: 27 centers of basic education, 11 centers of pre-basic education, and 1 center of secondary education.
Location
The municipality borders the north with the municipality of Distrito Central, the south with the municipalities of Sabanagrande and Reitoca, the east with the municipalities of Santa Ana and Sabanagrande, and the west with the municipalities of Lepaterique and Reitoca. It is situated on a small plateau descending from the Hula hill, at the foot of the Payagoagre mountain.
The municipality of Ojojona is located 34 km south of the city of Tegucigalpa, M.D.C. and offers an interesting variety of pottery and crafts made of clay and wood. It is located 7 km from the Pan-American Highway heading south.
Limits
- North: Municipalities of Distrito Central and Lepaterique;
- South: Municipality of Sabanagrande;
- East: Municipality of Santa Ana;
- West: Municipality of Reitoca.
Communities of Ojojona
- Ojojona (municipal seat)
- Aragua
- El Aguacatal
- El Circulo
- El Jícaro
- Guasucarán
- Güerisne
- Santa Cruz
- Saracarán
- Surcos de Caña
- Cofradía de Jícaro
- Cofradía de Güerisne
Tourism
Visit Tourism in Ojojona for more details
- Patronal Fair on January 20 in honor of San Sebastián, and on June 24 in honor of San Juan Bautista
- El Ocotillo Viewpoint
- Pueblo Viejo Rock Shelters
- Cross of Miracles
- Guazucarán Mines
- Rancho del Chilate
- Pablo Zelaya Sierra’s House
- In the Historic Center of Ojojona, there are 36 heritage buildings dating back to the 17th century. Among them, the Town Hall, the Cural House, Pancha Martínez’s Mansion, the Nuestra Señora del Carmen Church, and the San Juan Bautista Church, whose construction began in the second half of the 1600s, can be mentioned.
Notable Figures
Ladislao Valladares
During the time when Dionisio de Herrera was the Chief of State of Honduras, the creation of the Coat of Arms of the State of Honduras in 1825 was decreed, as the declared United Provinces of Central America used the coat of arms of New Spain. The task of creating the national emblem of Honduras fell upon Mr. Ladislao Valladares, one of the illustrious sons of Ojojona.
Pablo Zelaya Sierra
Ojojona is the birthplace of the national and international painter Pablo Zelaya Sierra. The highest National Prize for Honduran Art bears his name. He authored the manifesto «Apuntes con Lápiz» (1932), a fundamental document in Honduran culture.
Francisco Ramón Díaz Zelaya
He was a composer and musician who founded the first Honduran music magazine called «Musical.»
Panchito, as he was affectionately called, began studying music with the chapel master of his town, and later became a distinguished student of the maestros Carlos Hartling and Manuel de Adalid y Gamero.
In addition to them, there were illustrious individuals such as Guillermina Cerrato and Samuel Valladares who contributed to consolidating the history of the town.
El Guancasco
El Guancasco is a manifestation of brotherhood between two towns, in this case between Ojojona and Lepaterique. This ancient celebration is better known as Paisanazgo: «Reciprocal encounters held between two towns with the participation of their inhabitants and natural, religious, and political leaders from both communities, with the purpose of reaffirming friendship ties or reconciling their differences» (Mesoamérica Magazine, 1987, year 8, p. 13).
El Paisanazgo
El Paisanazgo is inscribed as a form of expression within the events that regulate the permanent relations between these towns, and whose culminating activities open and close the cycles of festivities in honor of each of the respective patron saints.
Today, the Guancasco continues to be a manifestation that represents a historical and social order through which local culture is internalized, reproduced, and experienced. It is an important part of the municipality’s identity and can be considered a space of collective memory and a symbol of cultural resistance.
