Quiche (ethnicity)

Quiché (or k'iche' ) is the name of a native people of Guatemala, as well as their language and nation in times pre-columbian The term quiché comes from qui (K'i), or quiy (k'iy), which means "many", and che (che'), original Mayan word, which alludes to a forest or land of many trees. El Quiché is also the name of a department of Guatemala.

History

The Quiché

The Quiché people are one of the native Mayan peoples of the Guatemalan highlands. In pre-Columbian times the Quichés established one of the most powerful states in the region. The last capital city was Gumarcaaj, also known as Utatlán, whose ruins are located two kilometers from Santa Cruz del Quiché, in the department of El Quiché, Guatemala.

They were conquered in 1524 by an army of thousands of indigenous people mainly from Tlaxcala and the Valley of Mexico, as well as hundreds of Spaniards, led by Pedro de Alvarado. The last commander of the Quiché army was Tecún Umán, who died in the battle of the Llanos del Pinal. Tecún Umán is still a national folk hero and legendary figure, he is also the national hero of Guatemala.

The department of Quiché was named in allusion to this town that originally occupied the territory called "Quix Ché" which means "trees with thorns" because in the region the magueyes, nopales, nettles, etc. abounded. This department is the central home of the Quiché people, although in recent times they have dispersed over a wider area of Guatemalan territory.

Economy

Agriculture has formed the basis of the Mayan economy since pre-Columbian times and corn is its main crop, in addition to cotton, beans (beans), sweet potato (sweet potato), cassava (or cassava) and cacao. The techniques of spinning, dyeing and weaving achieved a high degree of perfection. The Maya domesticated the turkey, but had no draft animals or wheeled vehicles. They made fine ceramic objects, which have hardly been surpassed in the New World outside of Peru. Cocoa seeds and copper bells were used as units of exchange, a material that was also used for ornamental works, as well as gold, silver, jade, sea shells and colored feathers. However, they were unaware of metal tools.

Society

The Maya peoples formed a very hierarchical society. They were governed by a political authority, the halach vinic, whose dignity was hereditary through the male line. This delegated authority over the village communities to local chiefs or bataboob, who fulfilled civil, military and religious functions.

Language

The Quiché language is part of the Mayan language family. The number of speakers is between 1 and 2 million people, mainly in the departments of El Quiché, Totonicapán, Sololá, Quetzaltenango, Huehuetenango and Suchitepéquez. It is the Mayan language with the most speakers in Guatemala and the second most spoken in the country. Most of the Quiché Indians also speak the Spanish language, except in a few isolated rural areas.

The most famous text in the Quiché language is the Popol Vuh, which narrates the origin of this people from the creation of the world, of the gods and of the first men and women, made of corn, until the Spanish conquest.

Personalities

Rigoberta Menchú, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1992, is part of the Quiché ethnic group.

Humberto Ak'abal, world-renowned Quiché author and winner of various international awards.