Nicaragua, largest country in Central America. Nicaragua is sometimes called “the land of lakes and volcanoes,” and the largest lakes in Central America and a chain of volcanic peaks dominate the western part of the country. Lakes also fill the craters of many of the volcanoes. Most of Nicaragua's people live in the country’s western lowlands, where most of the country’s economic activity also occurs. Managua, the country’s capital and largest city, lies along the shores of Lake Managua in western Nicaragua, on geologic fault lines. Severe earthquakes destroyed Managua twice in the 20th century. Nicaragua also has thick rain forests, rugged highlands, and fertile farming areas.

Nicaragua probably takes its name from Nicarao, chief of the indigenous people who lived around Lake Nicaragua at the time Spanish explorers and conquerors arrived in the early 1500s. Today, most of the people are of mixed European and Native American ancestry, but the country also has minorities of primarily Native American, African, or European descent. The total population is 5.6 million.