Counterclockwise from top: Quetzaltenango Central Park, Fertile valley of Almolonga, Chicabal Lagoon, Santa Maria Volcano, Santiaguito Volcano & Quetzaltenango at night.
Prior to the Spanish conquest the territory included in the modern department formed a part of the Kʼicheʼ Kingdom of Qʼumarkaj. The kingdom was defeated by the Spanish under Pedro de Alvarado in a number of decisive battles fought near the city of Quetzaltenango, then known as Xelaju. In the 19th century the territory of the modern department was included in the short-lived Central American state of Los Altos. The department was created by decree in 1845, five years after the fledgling state was crushed by Rafael Carrera.
The department has wide variations in local climate, due largely to marked differences in altitude in different areas. The year is divided into wet and dry seasons, with the wet season lasting from July to September and the dry season running from December to February. The wide climatic variation in the department allows for the production of a variety of agricultural products, including temperate fruits, vegetables and cereals in the highlands, as well as coffee on the lower slopes.
Quetzaltenango department has produced a number of high-profile Guatemalans, including several presidents as well as a number of musicians.
Name
The department takes its name from the city of Quetzaltenango, which serves as the departmental capital.[4] Although the original Kʼicheʼ inhabitants knew the city by the name Xelaju, the Nahuatl-speaking allies of the Spanish Conquistadors named it Quetzaltenango in their own language, meaning "land of the quetzal birds".[5]
History
Early history
The territory that came to be included within the modern department of Quetzaltenango was the scene of several decisive battles in February 1524 between Spanish conquistador Pedro de Alvarado and the Kʼicheʼ Kingdom of Qʼumarkaj. Pedro de Alvarado had initially advanced with his army along the Pacific coast without opposition until they reached the Samalá River; this region formed a part of the Kʼicheʼ kingdom.[6] Alvarado then turned to head upriver into the Sierra Madre mountains towards the Kʼicheʼ heartlands, crossing the pass into the fertile valley of Quetzaltenango. On 12 February 1524 Alvarado's Mexican allies were ambushed in the pass and driven back by the Kʼicheʼ warriors but the Spanish cavalry charge that followed was a shock for the Kʼicheʼ who had never seen horses before. The cavalry scattered the Kʼicheʼ and the army crossed to the city of Xelaju, modern Quetzaltenango, to find it deserted by its inhabitants.[7] Although the common view is that the Kʼicheʼ prince Tecun Uman died in the later battle near Olintepeque, the Spanish accounts are clear that at least one and possibly two of the lords of Qʼumarkaj died in the fierce battles upon the initial approach to Quetzaltenango.[8] The death of Tecun Uman is said to have taken place in the battle of El Pinar,[9] and local tradition has his death taking place upon the Llanos de Urbina (Plains of Urbina), upon the approach to Quetzaltenango near the modern village of Cantel.[10] Pedro de Alvardo, in his 3rd letter to Hernán Cortés, describes the death of one of the four lords of Qʼumarkaj upon the approach to Quetzaltenango. The letter was dated 11 April 1524 and was written during his stay at Qʼumarkaj.[9] Almost a week later, on 18 February 1524,[11] a Kʼicheʼ army confronted the Spanish army in the Quetzaltenango valley where they were comprehensively defeated, with many Kʼicheʼ nobles among the dead.[12] Such were the numbers of Kʼicheʼ dead that Olintepeque was given the new name Xequiquel, roughly meaning "bathed in blood".[13] This battle exhausted the Kʼicheʼ militarily and they asked for peace and offered tribute, inviting Pedro de Alvarado into their capital Qʼumarkaj.[14]
On 2 February 1838, Quetzaltenango joined together with Huehuetenango, El Quiché, Retalhuleu, San Marcos, Sololá, Suchitepéquez and Totonicapán to form the short-lived Central American state of Los Altos,[15] with the city of Quetzaltenango functioning as its capital.[16] The state was crushed in 1840 by general Rafael Carrera Turcios, at that time between periods in office as Guatemalan president.[17]
Departmental history
Quetzaltenango was declared a department by decree of the Asamblea Nacional Constituyente on 16 September 1845.[18][19]
In 1902 Quetzaltenango suffered a number of serious earthquakes.[20] An earthquake struck on 18 April 1902, with its epicentre within the Santa María volcano.[21] This was followed by a major eruption of the volcano from 24 to 26 October of the same year.[21] The volcano emitted a massive column of ash, provoking a fierce lightning storm.[21] The explosions emitted by the volcano were audible up to 160 kilometres (99 mi) away.[22] The government of Manuel Estrada Cabrera initially denied that the eruption had taken place in Guatemala, instead claiming that it had occurred in neighbouring Mexico.[22] Although the eruption caused great loss of life in western Guatemala, the Guatemalan government downplayed its severity.[23]
The activity of the volcano continued until 1906, followed be a period of calm that lasted until 1922.[23] A new series of eruptions took place from 1922 through to 1929, and formed a new side crater, the Santiaguito volcano.[23] On the night of 11 November 1929, a lava flow descended from the volcano towards El Palmar, killing hundreds of people, setting fire to a number of mountainsides and burying coffee plantations under several metres of lava.[24]
Geography
The department of Quetzaltenango is situated in the western highlands of Guatemala and covers an area of approximately 1,951 square kilometres (753 sq mi),[25] approximately 1.8% of the total area of the Republic of Guatemala.[26] The department is bordered on the west by the department of San Marcos, by the departments of Retalhuleu and Suchitepéquez to the south, by Huehuetenango Department to the north and by the departments of Totonicapán and Sololá to the east.[18]
The department is mountainous in nature and includes a wide range of altitudes, from 350 metres (1,150 ft) in Génova to 2,800 metres (9,200 ft) in Sibilia.[27] The average altitude is 2,333 metres (7,654 ft) above mean sea level.[26] The principal mountains include the volcanoes Cerro Quemado, Chicabal, Lacandon, Santa María, Santiaguito, Santo Tomás (also known as Picul) and Siete Orejas, as well as Zunil peak, often erroneously referred to as a volcano.[27][28] Cerro Quemado produces a number of thermal springs, several of which have been converted into baths.[29] The area covered by the department is seismically active, with earthquakes measuring from 4.5 to 5.2 on the Richter scale.[26]
The broken terrain of the department includes a number of wide valleys, including those occupied by the city of Quetzaltenango and the towns of San Juan Ostuncalco and Concepción Chiquirichapa.[27] The varied terrain of the department also includes plains, canyons and high cliffs.[27]
Other notable rivers in the department include the Tumalá River in the municipality of Cajolá, the El Naranjo River in the municipality of San Carlos Sija, and the Las Palomas and Xocal Rivers in the municipality of Concepción Chiquirichapa.[29]
The average temperature in the department of Quetzaltenango varies between 15 and 24 °C (59 and 75 °F), however there is wide variation due to the great difference in altitude in various parts of the department.[26] On the lower Pacific slopes the temperature can reach as high as 35 °C (95 °F), while temperatures as low as −7 °C (19 °F) have been recorded at higher altitudes.[26]
Average annual rainfall is 2,000 millimetres (79 in) in the municipality of Almolonga, and parts of the department at higher altitudes experience frost in the months from November through to March.[31] The municipality of Cantel receives an average annual rainfall that varies between 2,000 and 4,000 millimetres (79 and 157 in);[32] in Huitán it varies between 1,800 and 3,500 millimetres (71 and 138 in).[33]
Subtropical coniferous forest in the department of Quetzaltenango. The mountain at left is the Siete Orejas volcano.
Population
The 2018 census recorded the department's population at 799,101 inhabitants.[2] The inhabitants are divided between three principal ethnicities; Ladino, Kʼicheʼ Maya and Mam Maya.[35] Three languages are spoken in the department, broadly corresponding to the ethnic groups; Spanish, Kʼicheʼ and Mam.[36] In 2004, 40.4% of the population was listed as non-indigenous (i.e. Ladino) and 59.6% as indigenous (mainly Kʼicheʼ and Mam).[36] In 1999, average life expectancy was calculated as 63.7 years.[37] In the same year, 63.7% of dwellings had electricity, 70.1% had drinking water and 92.5% had sanitation.[37]
Each municipality is known for its different traditional indigenous dress, with the exceptions of Coatepeque, Colomba, Flores Costa Cuca and San Carlos Sija, where traditional clothing is not worn by the indigenous inhabitants.[38] These trajes are manufactured by the local inhabitants themselves.[38]
Economy and agriculture
The wide climatic variation within the department resulting from differences in altitude gives rise to a diverse range of agricultural products.[39] These include apples, beetroot, cabbages, carrots, high quality coffee, common beans, maize, onions, peaches, plums, potatoes, radishes, turnips and wheat.[39] Almolonga is the main producer of vegetables, both for the national market and for export, principally to Mexico and countries in Central America.[39][40] Salcajá is known for its production of a fruit liquor called caldo de frutas ("fruit wine").[39] Other products of the department include woolen textiles, cotton, silk, ceramics, alcoholic beverages and flour.[38]
Poorer high altitude areas of the department experience seasonal migration of workers to the Pacific lowlands in order to work on coffee, sugarcane and cotton plantations.[41]
Quetzaltenango city is the main tourist hub for the department and is a centre for cultural tourism.[58] Most hotels are located in Quetzaltenango city and Coatepeque, with 495 registered hotels in 2006.[58] Quetzaltenango city is also a centre for tourists studying Spanish as a second language, with 35 Spanish schools in 2006.[58] Tourist attractions outside Quetzaltenango city include the thermal baths located around the Cerro Quemado volcano, including the thermal baths of Almolonga, Aguas Amargas ("Bitter Waters") and Fuentes Georginas, which has become a tourist attraction of some importance.[29]
Archaeological sites
In 2010, seasonal rains uncovered the small Kʼicheʼ archaeological site of Chojolom in the municipality of Cantel. It has been tentatively dated to the Postclassic Period (c. 950-1521 AD).[59]Cerro Quiac is another small site on a hilltop in Cantel municipality,[60] dated to the Early Postclassic period (c. 950-1200 AD).[61]
Political structure
The departmental government is headed by the Governor of Quetzaltenango, who is appointed directly by the president of Guatemala.[62]Dora Otilia Alcahé López was appointed as departmental governor in February 2012 by president Otto Pérez Molina.[63]
^Although administered by the Department of Quetzaltenango, some of the municipality lies geographically within the department of Retalhuleu after the relocation of the village following a series of natural disasters provoked by the Santiaguito volcano.
Alfaro Mancía, Ana Luz; Jenny Díaz Díaz; Otto René Morales Estrada; Josué Herrera Cifuentes; María de los Angeles Morales Estrada; René Benítez Alfaro (November 2005). "Diagnóstico Administrativo Organizacional: Municipalidad de Quetzaltenango"(PDF) (in Spanish). Quetzaltenango, Guatemala: BENALUN Salud Ambiental Limitada. Retrieved 2010-12-31.
Cornejo Sam, Mariano. Q'antel (Cantel): Patrimonio cultural-histórico del pueblo de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción Cantel: Tzion'elil echba'l kech aj kntelab "Tierra de Viento y Neblina" (in Spanish). Quetzaltenango, Guatemala.
Dirección Técnica de Coordinación Regional y Departamental (June 1999). "Caracterización del Departamento de Quetzaltenango" (in Spanish). Guatemala: Secretaría de Planificación y Programación de la Presidencia SEGEPLAN. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2011-07-21. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
Gall, Francis (July–December 1967). "Los Gonzalo de Alvarado, Conquistadores de Guatemala". Anales de la Sociedad de Geografía e Historia (in Spanish). XL. Guatemala City: Sociedad de Geografía e Historia de Guatemala. OCLC72773975.
Iglesias Ponce de León, María Josefa; Andrés Ciudad Ruiz (1984). "Exploraciones arqueológicas en la cuenca alta del río Samalá (Guatemala)" [Archaeological exploration in the upper Samala River basin (Guatemala)]. Revista española de antropología americana (in Spanish) (14). Madrid, Spain: Universidad Complutense de Madrid: 9–32. ISSN0556-6533. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2016-02-29. Retrieved 2016-02-29.
INSIVUMEH. "Volcanes de Guatemala" (in Spanish). Guatemala City: Instituto Nacional de Sismología, Vulcanología, Meteorologíá e Hidrologíá (INSIVUMEH) - Ministerio de Comunicaciones, Infraestructura y Vivienda. Retrieved 2010-12-25.
Municipalidad de Concepción Chiquirichapa (1). "Información General del Municipio" (in Spanish). Guatemala: Municipalidad de Concepción Chiquirichapa. Retrieved 2010-12-28.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
Municipalidad de Génova (2). "Génova, Quetzaltenango". Guatemala: INFORPRESSCA. Archived from the original on 2008-10-02. Retrieved 2011-01-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
Municipalidad de Huitán (1). "Portada" (in Spanish). Guatemala: Municipalidad de Huitán. Retrieved 2010-12-28.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
Municipalidad de Huitán (2). "Acerca del Municipio" (in Spanish). Guatemala: Municipalidad de Huitán. Retrieved 2010-12-29.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
Municipalidad de Olintepeque (1). "Información General del Municipio" (in Spanish). Guatemala: Municipalidad de Olintepeque. Retrieved 2010-12-29.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
Pinto Soria, J. C.; Marco Tulio Escobar (February 1989). "El Palmar: ¿sólo un desastre natural?"(PDF). Boletín Centro de Estudios Urbanos y Regionales (in Spanish) (3). Guatemala: Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala. OCLC26201907. Retrieved 2012-01-17.
Recinos, Adrian (1986) [1952]. Pedro de Alvarado: Conquistador de México y Guatemala (in Spanish) (2nd ed.). Guatemala: CENALTEX Centro Nacional de Libros de Texto y Material Didáctico "José de Pineda Ibarra". OCLC243309954.