El Salvador, republic in north-eastern Central America, bounded on the north and east by Honduras, on the extreme south-east by the Gulf of Fonseca, on the south by the Pacific Ocean, and on the west and north-west by Guatemala. El Salvador, the smallest and most densely populated Central American state, is the only one without a Caribbean coastline. It has a total area of 21,041 sq km (8,124 sq mi). San Salvador is the capital and largest city.