Background

The highlands of Guatemala are a complex cultural and linguistic region. Unlike the Guatemalan lowlands, Maya identity and tradition remain strong in these areas. Nearly two-dozen different ethno-linguistic groups reside in the highlands, including large populations such as the Quiche’ and those occupying smaller pockets such as the Jakaltek.

The thriving ethnic and linguistic traditions present in the Guatemalan highlands can be attributed to many factors. In part, the isolation of large areas of the highlands from regions settled by Europeans and their later descendents, has allowed many populations the opportunity to live without intense pressure to assimilate. The close geographical proximity of multiple ethnic groups has also contributed to the conservation of cultural identity markers that serve to distinguish individuals of one group from their neighbors.

The violent history of thirty years of Guatemalan civil war (1966-1996) that eradicated over 200,000 Maya people and displaced millions of others, forcing them to flee for their lives, has also been a major factor in the construction of “Mayaness” in the highlands. Whereas indigneous people in Guatemala have traditionally identified themselves by their ethno-linguistic group rather than as belonging to a general “Maya” population, following the resolution of la violencia, a new form of pan-Maya identification has emerged – one that encourages individuals to maintain their customs and language while finding new ground on which Maya people can form alliances in order to promote indigenous rights.

Places of prehispanic heritage in the Guatemalan highlands rarely receive the attention that those in the lowlands have endured. Though there are some places of significant monumentality in the highlands, such as the site of Iximche, much of the prehispanic heritage in the region are small sites, often with many natural (vs. constructed) elements. Looting is not a significant problem in the Guatemalan highlands, though urban sprawl around Guatemala City and Antiqua pose aserious threat to heritage preservation.