Centre is one of the ten departments

Departments of Haiti

The Communes of Haiti are the third-level divisions of Haiti. The 10 departments have 42 arrondissements which are divided into 140 communes.-Artibonite Department:*Dessalines Arrondissement**Desdunes**Dessalines**Grande Saline...

 (French

French language

French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...

: départements) of Haiti

Haiti

Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...

, located in the center of the country, along the border with the Dominican Republic

Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...

. It has an area of 3,675 km² and a population of 564,200 (2002). Its capital is Hinche

Hinche

Hinche is a city in central Haiti. It has a population of about 50,000. It is the capital of Centre department. Hinche is the hometown of Charlemagne Péralte, the Haitian nationalist leader who resisted the United States occupation of Haïti .-Culture:The majority of the population are of African...

. It borders the Dominican Republic

Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...

 to the east. It is the only landlocked department of Haiti. It also contains the second largest lake in Haiti Lake Peligre

Lake Péligre

Lake Péligre is the second largest lake in Haiti, and is located in the Centre Department. Tracy Kidder describes it as "beautiful, blue waters set among steep, arid mountains"....

, which was created as a result of the construction of the Peligre Hydroelectric Dam

Péligre Hydroelectric Dam

The Péligre Dam is a hydroelectric dam located off the Centre Department on the Artibonite River of Haiti. It is the largest dam on the island of Hispaniola consisting of Haiti and the Dominican Republic....

 on the Artibonite River

Artibonite River

The Artibonite River is a 320 km long river in Haiti . It is the longest as well as the most important river in Haiti and the longest on the island of Hispaniola. Forming part of the international border between Haiti and the Dominican Republic, the river's sources are in the Cordillera Central in...

 during the 1950s. It is the largest hydroelectric dam in the Caribbean

Caribbean

The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...

.

The department is divided into four arrondissements:

1. Cerca la Source Arrondissement
2. Hinche Arrondissement
   Hinche Arrondissement
   Hinche is an arrondissement in the Centre Department of Haiti.It has 180,803 inhabitants.Postal codes in the Hinche Arrondissement start with the number 51.The arondissement consists of the following municipalities:* Hinche...
   
   
3. Lascahobas Arrondissement
   Lascahobas Arrondissement
   Lascahobas is an arrondissement in the Centre Department of Haiti.It has 136,503 inhabitants.Postal codes in the Lascahobas Arrondissement start with the number 53.The arondissement consists of the following municipalities:...
   
   
4. Mirebalais Arrondissement
   Mirebalais Arrondissement
   Mirebalais is an arrondissement in the Centre Department of Haiti, with 164,910 inhabitants.Postal codes in the Mirebalais Arrondissement start with the number 52.The arondissement consists of the following municipalities:* Mirebalais...