Lempira (Lenca ruler) Lempira (Lenca ruler) Lempira was a war chieftain of the Lencas of western Honduras in Central America during the 1530s, when he led resistance to Francisco de Montejo's attempts to conquer and incorporate the region into the province of Honduras. Mentioned as "Lempira" in documents written during the Spanish conquest, he is regarded by the people as a warrior hero. Jorge Lardé y Larín argues that the name "Lempira" comes from the word "lempira," derived from words of the Lenca language: "lempa", meaning "lord" as a title of hierarchy, "i" meaning "of", and "era", meaning "hill or mountain". Thus, Lempira,
La Unión, Lempira La Unión, Lempira La Unión is a municipality in the Honduran department of Lempira. It is one of the smallest municipalities of the Lempira department; travel to La Unión is a challenge. One way is to go 75 km from Gracias city on the common road for La Iguala and San Rafael, about 3 km before San Rafael is a left turn. An additional 13 km must be travelled. Another way is via Santa Bárbara-El Nispero-San Jerónimo-San Rafael-La Unión; the first 3 locations are in Santa Bárbara department. Formerly La Unión was a village called "Pueblo Nuevo", in the jurisdiction