Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Honduras

National Autonomous University of Honduras
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Honduras
Type	Public university
Established	19 September 1847; 176 years ago
Administrative staff	4980
Students	95960 (2018)
Location	Honduras
Campus	Urban
Athletics	40 varsity teams
Mascot	Pumas
Website	www.unah.edu.hn

The National Autonomous University of Honduras (Spanish: Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Honduras) is the national public university of Honduras. Founded in 1847, it has over 140 programs from the Bachelor's level to the Doctorate, and is the largest and highest ranked university in Honduras.^[1]

History

In December 1845, La Sociedad del Genio Emprendedor y del Buen Gusto was founded by Father José Trinidad Reyes as a private school. By 1847, it received backing from President Juan Lindo, and was reestablished as the University of Honduras, operating in the Church of St. Francis. In 1896, it was relocated to a building next to La Merced Church. In 1957, the military government gave the University autonomy, and it was renamed the National Autonomous University of Honduras. It later moved to the University City, where it operates today.^[2]

Campuses

University city

The main campus is located in the country's capital of Tegucigalpa and is home to the university's Medical School hospital and campus. Located in the city is the Observatorio Astronómico Centroamericano de Suyapa (OACS/UNAH), which uses a 42 cm Meade telescope.^[3]

Other campuses

Apart from the main campus, UNAH has eight Regional Centers. Those centers include UNAH Valle de Sula in San Pedro Sula, the Centro Universitario Regional del Litoral Atlantico (CURLA) in La Ceiba, the Centro Universitario Regional del Centro (CURC) in Comayagua, the Centro Universitario Regional Litoral Pacífico (CURLP) in the city of Choluteca, the Centro Tecnológico de Danlí in Danlí, El Paraíso, the Centro Universitario Regional de Occidente (CUROC) in Santa Rosa de Copán, the Centro Tecnológico del Valle de Aguan (CURVA) in Olanchito, and the Centro Universitario Regional Nororiental (CURNO) in Juticalpa, Olancho.^[4] It is currently Honduras' largest university in terms of student enrollment and one of the largest university systems in Central America.

Athletics

UNAH's university city is home to a sports complex named the Palacio Universitario, which has the 7,500 seat Estadio Olímpico José Trinidad Reyes, opened to the public in 2014.^[5] The university has 40 teams, including basketball, volleyball, soccer, and futsal.

Library

The UNAH Library system was founded in the late 1960s; the first principal was English librarian Mary Hallam (from 1968 to 1972). This library has more than 16,000 volumes. It has a website and some e-books.

Every campus of UNAH has its own library.