Chontales_Department

Chontales (Spanish: Departamento de Chontales) (Spanish pronunciation: [tʃonˈtales]) is a department in Nicaragua. It covers an area of 6,481 km² and has a population of 191,856. The capital is Juigalpa. Some 90 kilometres (56 mi) of land overlooks Lake Cocibolca (Lake Nicaragua) on the western side. The department is livestock and fishing based, and is also a producer of apples.