Tag: Guatemala

Guatemala is a unitary constitutional state, a republic with a presidential form of government. The 1985 Constitution is in force as amended in 1993. Administrative division: 22 departments (Alta Verapaz, Baja Verapaz, Chimaltenango, Chiquimula, El Progreso, Escuintla, Guatemala, Huehuetenango, Izabal, Xalapa, Peten, Quetzaltenango, Quiche, Retaluleu, Sacatepéquez, San Marcos, Santa Rosa, Solola, Suchitepekes, Toto-nikapan, Zacapa, Jutiapa). […]

ECONOMY: GENERAL INFORMATION The country’s economy is heavily conditioned by the colonial legacy and the influence of multinational companies. The Spaniards used indigenous forced labor for gold mining and distributed the land to officers, thus creating a land-based Creole aristocracy. The Indians were also prohibited from commercial activity, destined for the Spaniards who arrived in […]

Guatemala was conquered by Pedro de Alvarado in 1523. He found strong resistance in the very first inhabitants of the region, the Quichè, who however had been subdued by the Cakquiquel, who were instead very hospitable. Alvarado was the first governor and founded the city of Santiago de Caballeros de Guatemala (July 25th1524). Upon her […]

Guatemala is located in the north of Central America with borders to Mexico in the west and north, Belize and the Caribbean, Honduras and El Salvador in the east, and the Pacific in the south. Two mountain ranges run through the country from west to east, dividing the country into three natural regions. In the […]

Wildlife in Guatemala Guatemala has a rich mammalian fauna, including possums (opossums), anteaters, armadillos, brølape, peccary, half bears, weasel and small felines. Jaguar, cougar and tapir have become rare. In rivers and lakes there are American manatee or lamantine (a sea cow), caimans and crocodiles. More than 700 bird species have been observed in Guatemala. […]

The music scene has three dominant traditions: Mayan folk music, Ladino music with Spanish roots and art music. Archaeological documentation, imagery and written sources from before and after colonization attest to a rich music scene during the ancient Mayan civilization. Native American music The current population maintains in the mountain areas one of the strongest […]

Together with southern Mexico, Guatemala is the core area of ​​a 4000-5000 year old tradition known as Mayan culture. Besides agriculture based on maize, Mayan culture is characterized by its complex calendar systems, a sophisticated writing system and monumental architecture (pyramids) of stone. In so-called classical times (from 250 to 900), the whole of Petén […]

Guatemala is a republic in Central America. The country borders Mexico in the north and west, the Pacific in the south, El Salvador and Honduras in the southeast, as well as Belize and the Caribbean in the east. Most of the country is very mountainous and the climate is subtropical. With around 17 million inhabitants […]