Ocotal

Ocotal is the capital of the department of Nueva Segovia in Nicaragua, Central America, located within the municipality of Ocotal. Ocotal is located 13 miles (21 kilometers) south of the Honduras border on the Pan-American Highway. The city, which holds a population of 38,000, is located within a valley. The name comes from the Nahuatl word for pine resin.

Ocotal is twinned with Swindon, United Kingdom, with Hartford, Connecticut, United States, and with Wiesbaden, Germany.

In 1927, Ocotal suffered one of the first dive bombing attacks in history, conducted by ten Marine de Havilland biplanes fighting against Augusto César Sandino.