Place · region

Zelaya Department

Also known as Department of Zelaya

Zelaya Department was the large department of eastern Nicaragua formed from the former Mosquito Reserve after its forcible incorporation in 1894, and named after President José Santos Zelaya. It covered the whole Caribbean coast, home to Miskito, Creole and other communities. In the 1980s it was divided, and in 1987 its lands became the two autonomous regions of the Caribbean coast.

Zelaya Department
Image: Milenioscuro · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Mentioned in 1 state history

Mosquito Reserve

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Zelaya Department. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/zelaya-department
MLA
“Zelaya Department.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/zelaya-department. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Zelaya Department.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/zelaya-department.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Zelaya Department’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/zelaya-department (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻