Guatemala is the northernmost country in Central America. It shares borders with Mexico, Belize, Honduras, and El Salvador. The country also has coasts on the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean. The land is mountainous and homes to hundreds of microclimates and unique eco-systems. Generally, Guatemala experiences two seasons: the rainy season, called invierno, from May until October and the dry season, verano, from November until April.

The first people in Guatemala arrived during the ice ages around 60,000-80,000 years ago. These people were primarily nomadic hunter-gatherers. In the period after the ice age, agriculture was invented and the inhabitants of what is now Mexico and Guatemala successfully hybridized maize and included it as a staple in their diets. Pre-Mayan people began developing a more advanced culture around 2000 B.C. The history of the Maya is divided into three general time periods: pre-classic, classic, adn post classic periods. The Pre-classic Period lasted roughly from 2000 B.C. until 250 A.D. During this time, an increase in food production and spare time ked to an increased population and a higher standard of living. Agricultural techniques improved dramatically, a noble class emerged, and people started building limestone pyramids. The Classic Period from 250 A.D. until 900 A.D. was the golden age of the Maya. At its peak, the Mayan empire stretched from south of present day Guatemala to what is now central Mexico and had rich religious, literary, and military traditions. The civilization began to decline in the seventh century, and by the tenth century, the major cities had shrunk to little more than small towns. During the Post-classic period, Maya who abandoned the cities and Toltec groups from Mexico populated the Guatemala highlands and founded rival city-states. The Post-classic Period ended in 1524 when the Spanish arrived in search of gold after conquering the Aztec to the north.

The Spanish conquered the indigenous people quickly and forced them to the bottom of the socioeconomic ladder. After the Spanish Conquest, the Catholic church converted most of the population and gained major power and influence in Guatemala. The Guatemalan-born criollos and meztizosrose in revolt and gained independence for Guatemala in 1821, but this changed little for the indigenous population. A series of dictators governed Guatemala until 1945 when Juan José Arévalo was elected president. Arévalo created many institutions and policies to help the indigenous poor of Guatemala, and Jacobo Arbenz, his successor, continued many of these policies until he was overthrown by one of the first covert CIA operations in 1954. Arbenz was succeeded by a series of military rulers and Guatemala fell into violent chaos. Guatemala's civil war lasted from 1960 until 1996. It is estimated that around 250,000 people lost their lives as a result of the 36 year war. Since the peace accords were signed in 1996, very little progress has been made in the area of human rights, and many of the people holding political office in Guatemala are alleged to have been involved in some of the most atrocious events of the war.

Quick Facts

Official Country Name: Republic of Guatemala

Size: 108,890 km², slightly smaller than Tennessee

Population: 12,728,100

Government: Constitutional Democratic Republic

Currency: Quetzal US $1 is about 8 Quetzales

Language: Spanish and 23 officially recognized indigenous languages