Introduction to Guatemala for team members by: Carolyn Kleinert

1. And more!

4. Legends tell, of how the Quetzal got his
bright, "blood red' chest, in 1524, when
the Spanish conquistador, Pedro de Alvara
do, fought in battle with the great
Mayan Leader, Tecun Uman.
When the great Mayan warrior chief,
was falling to his death,
an emerald green male Quetzal,
flew into the warrior's chest, to try to
protect him, &
when the protective Warrior Quetzal bird,
regained his balance, it's chest was
marked with the great Mayan Chief's
crimson blood. To this day, it is the
sign of great warriors.
• Guatemala currency named for the quetzal
• Bird pictured on the flag

5.  Size- Slightly smaller than Tennessee
 Climate- tropical; hot & humid; cooler in lowlands
 Terrain- mostly mountains with narrow coastal plains
and rolling limestone plateau
 Resources- petroleum, nickel, rare woods, fish and
hydropower
 Natural Hazards- volcanoes in
mountains, earthquakes; Caribbean coast extremely
susceptible to hurricanes and tropical storms
 Volcan de Fuego, erupted Sept 12, 2012, as seen from
Antigua Guatemala
 Pacaya (elev. 2,552 m), erupted in May 2010 causing an
ashfall on Guatemala City

6.  March and April are the hottest and driest months.
 Rainy season- June to October is muggy and buggy
 With the rain, comes the mosquitoes:
 * * bring rain gear and repellent **
 It doesn’t rain all day during the rainy
season, but you can expect frequent showers
 October and November see the end of the
occasional rains and a return to cooler
temperatures
 In the highlands things get cool during
invierno (November–March), especially at night.
 Zacapa is @ elevation of ~400ft .. Expect low 60’s at night in
December

7.  GDP per capita is ½ average for Latin
America and Caribbean
 Agriculture is 13% of GDP and half of labor
force
 Exports include coffee, sugar, bananas and
vegetables
 Industries sugar, textiles and clothing,
metal, rubber, petroleum, furniture, tourism
 In El Oasis many men are employed at melon
farms owned by US companies

8.  The Mayan civilization flourished in Guatemala &
surrounding area during the first millennium A.D.
 1534- indigenous
Maya defeated by
Spanish, led by
Pedro de Alvarado;
Guatemala becomes
a Spanish colony
 After almost three centuries as a Spanish
colony, Guatemala won its independence in
1821.

9.  The 20th century has been characterized by dictators
and jockeying for power.
 Many US fruit companies have land interests in
Guatemala, most notably the ‘United Fruit Company’
 During the last half of the 20th century, it
experienced a variety of military and civilian
governments
 36-year Civil War of guerrilla warfare (1960-1996).
 Characterized by frequent changes of power, and deaths
and disappearances of 200,000 people, known as ‘los
desaparecidos’
 Óscar Mejía, a
particularly brutal
dictator during 1980s

10.  Guatemalans continue to face high levels of
violence and weak and corrupt law enforcement
institutions.
 Sixtypercent of the country lives in
poverty, and the increasing levels of crime, gang
violence and drug dealing show a society where
inequality, racism and poverty dominate

11.  Most populous country in
Central America
 Mestizo 60%, (mixed Amerindian-Spanish - in
local Spanish called Ladino) and European
 K'iche 9.1%, Kaqchikel 8.4%, Mam 7.9%, Q'eqchi
6.3%, other Mayan 8.6%, indigenous non-Mayan
0.2%, other 0.1% (2001 census)
 Religion- Roman Catholic, Protestant and
indigenous Mayan beliefs

12.  Averagemonthly income per family is
US $227 (1999)
 Almost 70% of the population lives on less than
US$2/day
 This is approximately 1/3 of the average income
in the rest of the Latin America
 Children frequently do not have much
schooling- often need to work to help sustain
the family
 Relationship ALWAYS take priority
over tasks
 Mi casa es su casa 
 Machismo

13.  Race and power go hand in hand
 Roots of racism all the way back to caste system that
characterized time of colonization
 Peninsulares-> Criollos -> Indios -> Negros
 Mestizo = mixed
 In all Latin America, there has only been 3
indigenous presidents, and never in Guatemala
 Mexico's Benito Juárez,
 Peru's Alejandro Toledo
 Bolivia's Evo Morales

14.  Richest 20% of population controls over 50% of
Guatemala’s overall consumption
 More than ½ of population is below poverty
line, with 13% in extreme poverty
 Poverty among indigenous groups (makes up 38%
of the population) averages 73% and extreme
poverty rises to 28%.
 Nearly one-half of Guatemala's children under
age five are chronically
malnourished, one of the
highest malnutrition rates
in the world

15.  Mayan staple foods like- Corn tortillas and Black beans
(frijoles) are eaten at nearly every meal. They are usually
refried (volteados), mashed, or simply eaten whole
(parados)
 Chicken, turkey, and beef are normally accompanied by
beans and rice (frijoles con arroz) or served in stews
(caldos)
 Pepián , a thick meat and vegetable stew, is a common
dish in the area of Antigua
 Seafood is common along the coasts
 Fresh fruits and vegetables, such
as yucca, carrots, plantains, celery,
cucumbers

19. There are many active volcanoes in Guatemala.
This one – Volcán de Fuego (Fire Volcano)
erupted Sept. 12, 2012

20. This sinkhole swallowed up a three-story
building is said to have been more the
result of poor planning when creating
pipelines rather than nature.

21.  CIA World Factbook-
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-
world-factbook/geos/gt.html
 Timeline of History -
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/country_
profiles/1215811.stm
 Civil War Info-
http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/guat
emala704/history/timeline.html#
 Weather-
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/guatemala/weath
er
 Family - http://www.ucl.ac.uk/dpu-
projects/Global_Report/cities/guatemala.htm

22.  1931- Jorge Ubico, pro-American dictator- gave
special rights to United Fruit Company; overthrown
by civil revolt in 1944
 1944- President Juan Arevalo introduces
educational, social-democratic reforms- including
redistributing of land to indigenous peasants.
Reforms continued by President Arbenz.
 1953- Guate gov’t took over 40% of United Fruit
Company land- exacerbating US worries of communist
expansion
 President Eisenhower approves covert supplying of
weapons to paramilitary groups opposing President Arbenz
 During the last half of the 20th century, it
experienced a variety of military and civilian
governments, as well as a 36-year guerrilla war
(1960-1996).

23.  1954- US- backed coup instates Colonel Castillo
and rescinds rights begun under previously
elected official.
 Civil War officially begins in 1960
 Civil War is characterized by frequent changes of
power, and deaths and disappearances of 200,000
of people, known as ‘los desaparecidos’
 Óscar Mejía, a
particularly brutal
dictator during 1980s

24.  1996 – cease fire declared and peace talks begin
 In January 2012, Guatemala assumed a
nonpermanent seat on the UN Security Council
for the 2012-13 term.
 Guatemalans continue to face high levels of
violence and weak and corrupt law enforcement
institutions.
 Sixty percent of the country lives in poverty,
and the increasing levels of crime, gang
violence and drug dealing show a society where
inequality, racism and poverty dominate many
peoples' lives.