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 - Antigua

The population is estimated at approximately 11,6 million inhabitants. The Maya people constitute approximately 55 % of the population, roughly 60 percent of the people live in rural zones, and the major part of the population is concentrated in the mountains.

National Anthem

• The Mayas had already been subjected by the Aztec when Pedro de Alvorado, was sent to Guatemala by Cortés, to establish the capital, Santiago el Mayor. Three years later, the site is abandoned following an indigenous rising.
• The capital, moved to Almolonga in 1527, will be destroyed, in 1541, by an earth tremor accompanied by a volcanic eruption. Other earthquakes will follow.
• In 1543, Santiago el Mayor (Antigua Guatemala) is moved to its current site. The following year, the country becomes general harbor office and its territory extends to all of Central America. The first urban layout is carried out by Antonelli; the city will be rebuilt (1590) following a new seism. Monuments of medieval inspiration and Renaissance rise during XVIIe century. The seism of 1717 involves an architectural rise: the rebuilding of the large buildings which the seism of 1773 will leave in ruins.
• In 1775, the capital of Guatemala is moved according to a decision of the Spanish authorities.
• In 1523, one of Hernan Cortés lieutenants, Pedro de Alvarado, called Tonatiuh by the natives, penetrates in Guatemala, the Maya country par excellence, the country of the quetzal bird sacred to the Mayas.
• Since 1821, Guatemala is a constitutional republic of presidential standard.

• Taking into account its position and its mountainous relief, Guatemala enjoys a large variety of climates determined by the differences in altitude. The zones located at 1 500 meters enjoy a particularly soft climate (16-20°). In the coastal plains, the temperature seldom goes below 25°. With the peak at 2 500 meters, the temperatures drop as one rises in altitude.

Spanish is the official language, but there are 23 indigenous languages of Maya-quiché origin, for the majority: quiché, cakchiquel, mam, kekchi, pocoman...

• Voltage : 120 volt
• Driving : to the right
• National Parade : September 15th
• Country motto : Liberty (Libertad!) 

The Quetzal.

• Canadian visitors please consult this handy site  Travel information and advisory reports
• For all other nationals please consult your Guatemala embassy or consulate in your country of origin.

Among the museums, the Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology of Aurora offers a splendid collection of Maya objects coming from Altiplano and Petén; the museum of the craft industry.

Guatemala is a country in Central America, to the south of Mexico, the west of Belize, north of Honduras and El Salvador, and to the east of the Pacific Ocean. Its total surface is 108.889 square kilometers

The country is made of three very different geographical areas: the covered coastal plain of forests, plantations and marshes; the mountain which rises brutally to reach 4 000 meters where is the majority of the population concentrated ; after a series of mountainous chains the relief drops to the forest of Petén which resembles Mexican Yucatan.

The country is crossed by the Madre Sierra, cordillera which is prolonged by the Andes. Some of its nodes, in the Cuchumatanes mounts rise up to 3 500 meters. It is also the country of volcanoes, one does not count any less than 26, among whom Tacana, Cerro Quemada, De Agua, always in activity, De Fuego, Atitlan and finally Tajamulco with its 4 220 meters whose node is regarded as a place crowned by the Mams Indians.

Several rivers sprinkle the country, most significant is Usumacinta (600 kilometers), its banks were one of the hearths of the Maya civilization. The lakes are very numerous: in the heart of Petén, in a luxurious forest is Petén Itza an imposing monument, near the famous Maya ruins; the lake Atitlan, 1 500 meters of Altitude; the lakes Amatitlan and Izabal. Resources: its forests are the field of hundreds of vegetable species, of which invaluable wood (cedar, mahogany tree), the chicozapote (which is used to manufacture the chewing gum), the palo of hule, the zapotillier... They are populated by many animals: the jaguar, the puma, the ocelot, the hurlor monkey , the tatou and especially the quetzal bird whose feathers change color according to the sun, and are at the origin of the myth of the plumed serpent Quetzalcoatl, one of the gods pre-Colombian.

Guatemala or Ciudad of Guatemala: The capital extends on a plate, with 1500 m of altitude, 80 km off the Pacific Ocean. Half of the industrial production of Guatemala is concentrated there. Founded in 1776 under the name of Santiago de Los Caballeros of Guatemala, after the earthquakes which destroyed the two preceding capitals, Antigua and Ciudad Vieja, it itself was devastated in 1917-1918 by six weeks of earthquakes, and was damaged again in 1976. This modern commercial city, has beautiful shops and a lively market. The national museum of archaeology preserves an impressive collection of objects originally from Mayan sites. The university San Carlos, one of oldest of the Americas, was created into 1676.