Hondo River (Belize)

Hondo River
The Rio Hondo, border between Mexico and Belize
Location
CountriesBelize and Mexico
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • locationBelize
Mouth 
 • location
Chetumal Bay
 • coordinates
18°29′16″N 88°19′06″W / 18.48791°N 88.31841°W / 18.48791; -88.31841
 • elevation
0 m (0 ft)
Length145 km (90 mi)

The Hondo River or Río Hondo ([ˈri.o ˈondo]) is a river of Central America, 145 kilometres (90 mi) long, which flows in a northeasterly direction into Chetumal Bay on the Caribbean Sea.[1] Most of the border between Mexico and Belize is defined by the Hondo or its tributary, Blue Creek, the latter also known as the Río Azul.[2]

Geography

The Hondo River originates in the Petén Department of Guatemala,[3] enters Mexico and forms most of the border with Belize to the south before entering Chetumal Bay.[4] It is the bay's primary inflow, supplying 1.5×109 cubic metres (5.3×1010 cu ft) of freshwater.[5] It has an average width of 50 metres (160 ft) and an average depth of 10 metres (33 ft).[1] The river generally follows the Bravo Escarpment to its north, meandering in a southwestly to northeastly direction.[6] The floodplain usually ranges from 1 to 3 kilometres (0.62 to 1.86 mi) wide.[6] The watershed occupies 15,075.5 square kilometres (5,820.7 sq mi).[4] The Hondo has a number of tributaries, including Blue Creek.[7]

The surrounding vegetation consists of "medium subdeciduous forest, low evergreen forest, low flood forest, savanna, cultivated grasslands, sugar cane cultivation, and riverbank mangrove".[1]

Climate

The temperature ranges from 21 to 31 °C (70 to 88 °F), averaging 26 °C (79 °F).[1] The annual precipitation of 1,178 millimetres (46.4 in), with a rainy season between June and September.[1]

History

Archaeologists Thomas Guderjan and Samantha Krause determined that "the Rio Hondo was a major transportation route for goods to and from the Caribbean sea" for the pre-Columbian Maya civilization.[8] A "dock and dam complex" has been discovered on the Hondo near Blue Creek.[8][9] What are likely traces of Maya farming systems were found in the upper reaches of the Hondo.[8] Maya rectangular raised fields "occur with great abundance along the Hondo River flood plain."[10] Three major Maya sites, Aventura, Nomul and El Posito, lie on the high ridge between the Hondo and New River rivers.[11]

Following the Spanish defeat in September 1798 in the Battle of St. George's Caye off the coast of what is now Belize, the Spanish and British agreed in a series of treaties to establish the Hondo as the boundary between their lands.[12] Raids and attacks against British mahogany cutters were reported crossing over the Hondo River in 1846 and March 1847, supposedly by Native Americans, but possibly by Mayans.[13] A treaty was signed in 1893 between Britain and Mexico which set the border between the latter and what was then British Honduras; one of the treaty's provisions stipulated Britain's help in suppressing Native American raids in the river's vicinity.[14]

Anthem

The river is mentioned in a stanza of Belize's national anthem, "Land of the Free":[15]

...
Our fathers, the Baymen, valiant and bold
Drove back the invader; this heritage hold
From proud Rio Hondo to old Sarstoon,
Through coral isle, over blue lagoon;
...

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Corona-Figueroa, M. Fabiola; Ortíz-Wolford, Jenniffer S.; Ramos, Eric A.; Lara-Sánchez, Lizbeth E.; Padilla-Saldívar, Janneth A.; Castelblanco-Martínez, Nataly (2026). "Expanding Habitat Use? Occurrence of Common Bottlenose Dolphins in Oligohaline and Freshwater Environments of the Northern Mesoamerican Caribbean" (PDF). Aquatic Mammals. 52 (2): 148–149. Retrieved 28 May 2026.
  2. ↑ García-Álvarez, Jacobo; Puente-Lozano, Paloma, eds. (2022). Beneath the Lines: Borders and Boundary-making from the 18th to the 20th Century. Springer. p. 85. ISBN 978-3-030-96903-5. Retrieved 28 May 2026.
  3. ↑ Katunob: Occasional Publications in Mesoamerican Anthropology. 1974. p. 19. Retrieved 29 May 2026.
  4. 1 2 Williams, Isani (November 2019). "Transboundary Water Cooperation in Belize" (PDF). Retrieved 28 May 2026.
  5. ↑ Isaza, C. F. A. (2006). Global International Waters Assessment: Caribbean Sea/Colombia & Venezuela, Caribbean Sea/Central America & Mexico. University of Kalmar. p. 24. Retrieved 30 April 2026.
  6. 1 2 Walker, Debra W., ed. (2016). Perspectives on the Ancient Maya of Chetumal Bay. University Press of Florida. p. 99. ISBN 978-0-8130-6279-2. Retrieved 28 May 2026.
  7. ↑ "The rivers of Belize with their tributaries". belizerivers.org. Archived from the original on 5 February 2006. Retrieved 28 May 2026.
  8. 1 2 3 Williams, Eduardo (2022). Aquatic Adaptations in Mesoamerica. Archaeopress Publishing. p. 253. ISBN 978-1-78969-911-1. Retrieved 28 May 2026.
  9. ↑ Barrett, Jason W.; Guderjan, Thomas H. (June 2006). "An Ancient Maya Dock and Dam at Blue Creek, Rio Hondo, Belize". Latin American Antiquity. 17 (2). Retrieved 28 May 2026.
  10. ↑ Kauil, Liily (1977). "The art and archaeology of hydraulic agriculture in the Maya lowlands". Retrieved 28 May 2026.
  11. ↑ "N/A". Scientific American. Vol. 236. 1977. p. 117. Retrieved 28 May 2026.
  12. ↑ Götz, Christopher M.; Emery, Kitty M., eds. (2013). The Archaeology of Mesoamerican Animals. Lockwood Press. p. 353. ISBN 978-1-937040-05-5. Retrieved 28 May 2026.
  13. ↑ Bolland, O. Nigel (2003), Colonialism and Resistance in Belize (Second ed.), University of the West Indies Press, pp. 104–105, ISBN 976-640-141-1, retrieved 28 May 2026
  14. ↑ Fernandez, Julio A. (1989). Belize: Case Study for Democracy in Central America. p. 80. ISBN 978-0566057212. Retrieved 28 May 2026.
  15. ↑ "National Anthem & Prayer". Government of Belize Press Office. Retrieved 28 May 2026.
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