Sites dating to 6500 BC have been found in the Quiché region in the Highlands, and Sipacate and Escuintla on the central Pacific coast.Īrchaeologists divide the pre-Columbian history of Mesoamerica into the Preclassic period (3000 BC to 250 AD), the Classic period (250 to 900 AD), and the Postclassic period (900 to 1500 AD). Pollen samples from Petén and the Pacific coast indicate that maize cultivation had been developed by the people by 3500 BC.
There is archaeological proof that early Guatemalan settlers were hunter-gatherers. Archaeological evidence, such as obsidian arrowheads found in various parts of the country, suggests a human presence as early as 18,000 BC. The first evidence of human habitation in Guatemala dates to 12,000 BC. Main article: History of Guatemala Pre-Columbian This was the name that the Tlaxcaltecan warriors who accompanied Pedro de Alvarado during the Spanish Conquest gave to this territory. The name "Guatemala" comes from the Nahuatl word Cuauhtēmallān, or "place of many trees", a derivative of the K'iche' Mayan word for "many trees" or, perhaps more specifically, for the Cuate/Cuatli tree Eysenhardtia.
Although Guatemala is rich in export goods, around a quarter of the population lived in precarious conditions (2022).
As of 2014, Guatemala ranks 31st of 33 Latin American and Caribbean countries in terms of the Human Development Index. Since a United Nations–negotiated peace accord, Guatemala has achieved both economic growth and successful democratic elections, although it continues to struggle with high rates of poverty and crime, drug cartels, and instability. įrom 1960 to 1996, Guatemala endured a bloody civil war fought between the US-backed government and leftist rebels, including genocidal massacres of the Maya population perpetrated by the military. A U.S.-backed military coup in 1954 ended the revolution and installed a dictatorship. In 1944, the authoritarian leader Jorge Ubico was overthrown by a pro-democratic military coup, initiating a decade-long revolution that led to sweeping social and economic reforms.
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Beginning in the early 20th century, it was ruled by a series of dictators backed by the United Fruit Company and the United States government. In 1823 Guatemala became part of the Federal Republic of Central America, which dissolved by 1841.įrom the mid- to late 19th century, Guatemala suffered chronic instability and civil strife. Guatemala attained independence in 1821 from Spain and Mexico. In the 16th century, most of this area was conquered by the Spanish and claimed as part of the viceroyalty of New Spain. The core of the Maya civilization, which extended across Mesoamerica, was historically based in the territory of modern Guatemala. Guatemala is a representative democracy its capital and largest city is Nueva Guatemala de la Asunción, also known as Guatemala City, the largest city in Central America. With an estimated population of around 17.2 million, it is the most populous country in Central America and is the 11th most populous country in the Americas. Guatemala ( / ˌ ɡ w ɑː t ə ˈ m ɑː l ə/ ( listen) GWAH-tə- MAH-lə Spanish: ( listen)), officially the Republic of Guatemala (Spanish: República de Guatemala), is a country in Central America, bordered by Mexico to the north and west, Belize and the Caribbean to the northeast, Honduras to the east, El Salvador to the southeast and the Pacific Ocean to the south.
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