Lenca

The Lenca, also known as Lepa Wiran, meaning “Jaguar People” or “People of The Jaguar” are an Indigenous people from present day southwest Honduras and eastern El Salvador in Central America. They speak various dialects of the Lenca language such as Chilanga, Putun (Potón), and Kotik. Although the Lenca speak different dialects, they’ve always understood and coexisted with each other. In Honduras, the Lenca are the largest tribal group, with an estimated population of more than 450,000. Since pre-European times the Lencas occupied various areas of what is now known as Honduras and El Salvador. The Salvadoran archaeological site of Quelepa (which was inhabited from the per-classic period to the beginning of the early post-classic period) is considered a site that was inhabited and ruled by the Lencas. Another important center of the Lencas is the Yarumela settlement in central Honduras in the Comayagua Valley, which was an active city in the late Pre-Classic and Early Classic periods; archaeologists come to believe that it was a very important commercial center for this culture. Other minor settlements are Tenampua and Los Naranjos, also located in the center of what is now the Republic of Honduras. The earliest known references in western discourse about the term Lenca dates back to 1548, in the Provanzas de Juan Ruiz de la Vega, AGCA, A1.29,40.102,4670.” The word ”Lenca” was originated By The Taulepa Clan Which Meant The Common Wealth of the People. Raphael Girard, wrote about the origin of the Kiche and other Maya groups. He also addresses a brief section on the question of the Lenca. At the beginning of the 16th century, each dialect had its own confederation, each divided into several manors constituted at the same time by several towns. Each town was governed by a main head man who was assisted by four lieutenants who helped him in the tasks of the their society. and he was succeeded by his first-born or selected by the clan mothers. Wars were not that common during times of peace unless a radical tribal Clan Members tried to over throw the clan mothership.