Islas de la Bahía ("Bay Islands") is one of the 18 departments (departamentos) into which the Central American nation of Honduras is divided.

The departmental capital is Roatán.

The department covers a total surface area of 261 km² and, in 1991, had an estimated population of 24,000. Islas de la Bahía comprises the islands of Roatán, Guanaja, Utila, Barbaretta, the Cochinos Cays, and several smaller islets.

Municipalities

Islas de la Bahía department is divided into four municipalities (municipios):

1. Guanaja
2. José Santos Guardiola
3. Roatán
4. Útila

History

The Bay Islands were first discovered by Columbus on his fourth voyage to America in 1502. They were later claimed, and successively held, by Great Britain, Spain, and the Dutch United Provinces. Britain finally took control in 1643 and, with the exception of a one-month period of Spanish dominance in 1780, held onto them as a Crown colony, dependent on Jamaica. In 1860, in the aftermath of the William Walker filibustering affair, the British crown recognized Honduran sovereignty and ceded possession of them. The department of Islas de la Bahía was officially incorporated into the nation on 14 March 1872.

The English language is still the main language on the islands, contrary to the Spanish language of mainland Honduras.