Quetzaltenango (, also known by its Maya name Xelajú or Xela ) is both the seat of the namesake Department and municipality, in

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

. The city is located in a mountain valley at an elevation of

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''. The comb ...

at its lowest part. It may reach above within the city. The Municipality of Quetzaltenango consists of an area of . Municipalities abutting the municipality of Quetzaltenango include

Salcajá Salcajá is a town and municipality in Quetzaltenango department of Guatemala. Salcajá is best known for the Church of San Jacinto, founded in 1524, which was the first church built in Central America since it was one of the first places invade ...

, Cantel,

Almolonga The Almolonga volcano, also called "Cerro Quemado" (Burned Mountain) or "La Muela" (The Molar) due to its distinct shape, is an andesitic stratovolcano in the south-western department of Quetzaltenango in Guatemala. The volcano is located near ...

Zunil Zunil () is a town and municipality in the Quetzaltenango department of Guatemala with a surface area of .El Palmar, Concepción Chiquirichapa, San Mateo, La Esperanza, and Olintepeque in Quetzaltenango department and

San Andrés Xecul San Andrés Xecul () is a town, with a population of 15,074 (2018 census),Citypopulation.de
Population of citi ...

Totonicapán Totonicapán is a city in Guatemala. It serves as the capital of the department of Totonicapán and as the administrative seat for the surrounding municipality of Totonicapán. History In 1838 Totonicapam was declared an independent republic ...

department.

History

In Pre-Columbian times Quetzaltenango was a city of the

Mam Mam or MAM may refer to: Places * An Mám or Maum, a settlement in Ireland * General Servando Canales International Airport in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico (IATA Code: MAM) * Isle of Mam, a phantom island * Mam Tor, a hill near Castleton in t ...

Maya people called Xelajú, although by the time of the Spanish Conquest it had become part of the K'iche' Kingdom of Q'umarkaj. The name may be derived from ''xe laju' noj'' meaning "under ten mountains". The city was said to have already been over 300 years old when the Spanish first arrived. With the help of his

allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

Conquistador Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (, ; meaning 'conquerors') were the explorer-soldiers of the Spanish and Portuguese Empires of the 15th and 16th centuries. During the Age of Discovery, conquistadors sailed beyond Europe to the Americas, O ...

Pedro de Alvarado Pedro de Alvarado (; c. 1485 – 4 July 1541) was a Spanish conquistador and governor of Guatemala.Lovell, Lutz and Swezey 1984, p. 461. He participated in the conquest of Cuba, in Juan de Grijalva's exploration of the coasts of the Yucatá ...

defeated and killed the Maya ruler

Tecún Umán Tecun UmanAlternate transliterations include Tecún Umán, Tecúm Umán, Tecúm Umam, Tekun Umam, etc. (1500? – February 20, 1524) was one of the last rulers of the K'iche' Maya people, in the Highlands of what is now Guatemala. According to ...

here. When Alvarado conquered the city for Spain in the 1520s, he called it by the

Nahuatl Nahuatl (; ), Aztec, or Mexicano is a language or, by some definitions, a group of languages of the Uto-Aztecan language family. Varieties of Nahuatl are spoken by about Nahua peoples, most of whom live mainly in Central Mexico and have smaller ...

name used by his Central Mexican Indian allies, "Quetzaltenango", generally considered to mean "the place of the

quetzal Quetzals () are strikingly colored birds in the trogon family. They are found in forests, especially in humid highlands, with the five species from the genus ''Pharomachrus'' being exclusively Neotropical, while a single species, the eared quet ...

bird." Quetzaltenango became the city's official name in colonial times. However, many people (especially the indigenous population) continue to call the city "Xelajú" or more commonly "Xela" for short, and some proudly, but unofficially, consider it the "capital of the Mayas". Quetzaltenango Parque Central c

From 1838 to 1840 Quetzaltenango was the capital of the state of Los Altos, one of the states or provinces of the Federal Republic of Central America. As the union broke up, the army of Rafael Carrera conquered Quetzaltenango making it part of Guatemala. In 1850, the city had a population of approximately 20,000. During the 19th century, coffee was introduced as a major crop in the area. As a result, the economy of Xela prospered. Much fine

Belle Époque The Belle Époque or La Belle Époque (; French for "Beautiful Epoch") is a period of French and European history, usually considered to begin around 1871–1880 and to end with the outbreak of World War I in 1914. Occurring during the era ...

architecture can still be found in the city. On October 24, 1902, at 5:00 pm, the Santa María Volcano erupted. Rocks and ash fell on Quetzaltenango at 6 PM, only one hour after the eruption. In the 1920s, a young

Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnicities * Romani people, an ethnic group of Northern Indian origin, living dispersed in Europe, the Americas and Asia ** Romani genocide, under Nazi rule * Romani language, any of several Indo-Aryan languages of the Roma ...

woman named Vanushka Cardena Barajas died and was buried in the Xela city cemetery. An active legend has developed around her tomb that says those who bring flowers or write a request on her tomb will be reunited with their former romantic partners. The Guatemalan songwriter Alvaro Aguilar wrote a song based on this legend. In 1930 the only electric railway in Guatemala, the ''

Ferrocarril de Los Altos Guatemala has a network of narrow gauge railroads, passenger and freight trains currently run. History Construction of the first railway in Guatemala commenced in 1877 and the first section began operation in 1880, connecting Puerto San J ...

'', was inaugurated. It was built by

AEG Allgemeine Elektricitäts-Gesellschaft AG (AEG; ) was a German producer of electrical equipment founded in Berlin as the ''Deutsche Edison-Gesellschaft für angewandte Elektricität'' in 1883 by Emil Rathenau. During the Second World War, AEG ...

and

Krupp The Krupp family (see pronunciation), a prominent 400-year-old German dynasty from Essen, is notable for its production of steel, artillery, ammunition and other armaments. The family business, known as Friedrich Krupp AG (Friedrich Krup ...

and had 14 train cars. The track connected Quetzaltenango with San Felipe, Retalhuleu. It was soon destroyed by mudslides and finally demolished in 1933. The people of Quetzaltenango are still very proud of the railway. A railway museum has been established in the city center. Since the late 1990s Quetzaltenango has been having an economic boom, which makes it the city with the second-highest contribution to the Guatemalan economy. With its first high-rise buildings being built, it is expected by 2015 to have a more prominent skyline, with buildings up to 15 floors tall. In 2008, the Central American Congress

PARLACEN The Central American Parliament ( es, Parlamento Centroamericano), also known as PARLACEN, is the political institution and parliamentary body of the Central American Integration System (SICA). Its headquarters are in Guatemala City. History T ...

stated that every September 15, Quetzaltenango will be Central America's capital of culture. Quetzaltenango was supposed to host

2018 Central American and Caribbean Games The 23rd Central American and Caribbean Games were held in Barranquilla, Colombia. Asamblea ODECABE, Islas Caimán' (translation: "CASCO Assembly, Cayman Islands"). Published by CACSO on 2012-10-27; retrieved 2012-11-13. Bidding process Quetz ...

but dropped out due to a lack of funding for the event. In March 2022, indigenous activists began blockading the central waste deposit near Valle de Palajunoj to protest a city development plan enacted by the municipal authorities in June 2017.

Climate

According to Köppen climate classification, Quetzaltenango features a subtropical highland climate (''Cwb''). In general, the climate in Quetzaltenango can go from mild to chilly, with occasional sporadic warm episodes. The daily high is usually reached around noon. From then on, temperatures decrease exceptionally fast. The city is quite dry, except during the rainy season. Quetzaltenango is the coolest major city in Guatemala. There are two main seasons in Quetzaltenango (as in all of Guatemala); the rainy season, which generally runs from late May through late October, and the dry season, which runs from early November until April. During the rainy season, rain falls consistently, usually in the afternoons, but there are occasions in which it rains all day long or at least during the morning. During the dry season, the city frequently will not receive a single drop of rain for months on end. The coldest months are November through February, with minimum temperatures averaging , and maximum temperatures averaging . The warmest months are March through July, with minimum temperatures averaging and maximum temperatures averaging . Yearly, the average low is and the average high is .

Economy

Historically, the city produced wheat, maize, fruits, and vegetables. It also had a healthy livestock industry. Livestock was exported throughout the country and to

El Salvador El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south b ...

. As of 1850, wheat was the largest export, followed by

cacao Cacao is the seed from which cocoa and chocolate are made, from Spanish cacao, an adaptation of Nahuatl cacaua, the root form of cacahuatl ("bean of the cocoa-tree"). It may also refer to: Plants *''Theobroma cacao'', a tropical evergreen tree ** ...

sugar Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose, fructose, and galactose. Compound sugars, also called disaccharides or double ...

, wool and cotton.

Sports

Quetzaltenango is home to the Club Xelajú MC soccer team. The team competes at

Estadio Mario Camposeco The Estadio Mario Camposeco is a football stadium located in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. It is the home of one of the most traditional clubs in Guatemala, Xelajú MC (''Los Chivos''). It has a capacity of 11,220. Location The Mario Camposeco ...

which has a capacity of 13,500 and is the most successful non-capital team in the Liga Nacional de Fútbol de Guatemala. Due to the city's high altitude many athletes have prepared themselves here such as Olympic silver medalist Erick Barrondo and the 2004 Cuban volleyball team. The swimming team has enjoyed success in national and international events. Quetzaltenango withdrew from hosting the

. It planned to build a 30,000-seat stadium by 2016, as well seven new facilities for indoor sports and aquatics.

Transportation

The city has a system of micro-buses for quick and cheap movement. A micro-bus is essentially a large van stuffed with seats. Micro-buses are numbered based on the route they take (e.g., "''Ruta 7''"). There is no government-run mass transport system in the city. The sole public means of transport is the bus or micro-buses. Transportation to other cities is provided by bus. Bicycling is a way to get around and to travel to (and in) rural areas.

Quetzaltenango Airport Los Altos Airport ( es, Aeropuerto Los Altos, ), also known as Quetzaltenango Airport, serves the city of Quetzaltenango, also known as "Xelajú" or "Xela," and western Guatemala. It is operated and administrated by Dirección General de Aeron� ...

provides air service to the city.

Education

Quetzaltenango,(Xela) is the center of many schools and Universities that provide Education to locals and many thousands of students from the surrounding cities and departments (states) and international students from North America and Europe, that's the reason it's a very important city for the south-west/north-west region of the Country of Guatemala, for many decades Quetzaltenango has produced distinguished Citizens through all Educational establishments, among those we can mention: * Centro Universitario de Occidente San Carlos de Guatemala (CUNOC) * Universidad Rafael Landivar * Universidad Mariano Gálvez *

Universidad Mesoamericana Universidad Mesoamericana (in English, Mesoamerican University) is a private university in Guatemala. It has branches in Guatemala City and Quetzaltenango. History In 1971, the Salesians of Don Bosco association signed an agreement of academic ...

* Universidad Francisco Marroquín * Universidad de Occidente * Universidad Galileo * Universidad del Istmo (

Opus Dei Opus Dei, formally known as the Prelature of the Holy Cross and Opus Dei ( la, Praelatura Sanctae Crucis et Operis Dei), is an institution of the Catholic Church whose members seek personal Christian holiness and strive to imbue their work an ...

affiliated) * Universidad Del Valle de Guatemala

People born in Quetzaltenango

* Maria Vicenta Rosal (1820–1886), religious leader * Manuel Barillas (1845–1907), President of Guatemala * Jesus Castillo (1877–1946), Musician * Ricardo Castillo (1891–1966), composer *

Rodolfo Robles Rodolfo Robles (1878–1939) was a Guatemalan physician and philanthropist. In 1915, he was the first to describe onchocerciasis in Latin America, which was known and widespread on the African continent and first described in 1890 by Sir Patr ...

(1878–1939), physician and philanthropist * Manuel Estrada Cabrera (1898–1924), President of Guatemala * Domingo Bethancourt (1906-1980), Musician *

Rodolfo Galeotti Torres Rodolfo Galeotti Torres (4 March 1912 – 22 May 1988) was a Guatemalan sculptor. Biography Rodolfo Galeotti Torres was born in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. He served as director of the Escuela Nacional de Artes Plásticas "Rafael Rodríguez ...

(1912–1988), sculptor *

Efraín Recinos Efraín Enrique Recinos Valenzuela (May 15, 1928 – October 2, 2011) was a Guatemalan contemporary architect, muralist, urbanist, painter and sculptor. Recinos' works adorn the facades and interiors of many of Guatemala's landmark building ...

(1928–2011), engineer, architect, sculptor * Jacobo Árbenz Guzmán (1913–1971), President of Guatemala * Alberto Fuentes Mohr (1927–1979), economist, finance minister, foreign minister, social-democratic leaders * Comandante Rolando Morán (1929-1998), one of the guerrilla leaders in the Guatemalan Civil War *

Carlos Navarrete Cáceres Carlos Alberto Navarrete Cáceres (born January 29, 1931 in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala) is an anthropologist and writer. He studied history and literature at the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala and received his doctorate in anthropology from ...

(b. 1931), anthropologist and writer *

Otto René Castillo Otto René Castillo (April 25, 1934 – March 23, 1967) was a Guatemalan poet, activist, guerrilla fighter and revolutionary. Early life and activism Castillo was born in Quetzaltenango on April 25, 1934, to middle-class parents. Active in ...

(b. 1934), poet and revolutionary * Danilo Lopez (1937-2017), swimmer *

Juan Arturo Gutierrez Pollo Campero is a fast-food restaurant chain, located in Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Mexico, Spain, Bahrain, Belize, Haiti, Montserrat, the British Virgin Islands, Africa, Brazil, Canada, and Italy. The chain has nearl ...

, founder of international fast-food chain

Pollo Campero Pollo Campero is a fast-food restaurant chain, located in Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Mexico, Spain, Bahrain, Belize, Haiti, Montserrat, the British Virgin Islands, Africa, Brazil, Canada, and Italy. The chain has ...

Luis Rolando Ixquiac Xicara Luis Rolando Ixquiac Xicará (born 1947) is an indigenous artist born in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. He studied at the Escuela Nacional de Artes Plásticas "Rafael Rodríguez Padilla" in Guatemala, and continued his studies in Paris, France. He ...

(b. 1947), artist *

Julio Serrano Echeverría Julio Serrano Echeverría (born 1983 in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala) is a Guatemalan literature, writer, poet, and filmmaker. He is the founder of the publishing house Libros Mínimos, one of the first Guatemalan publishers in offering publication ...

(b. 1983), poet and writer

Consular representations

* Consulate of El Salvador * Consulate of Italy * Consulate of Mexico *Consulate of Spain

Twin towns – sister cities

Quetzaltenango is twinned with: *

Campeche Campeche (; yua, Kaampech ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Campeche ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Campeche), is one of the 31 states which make up the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. Located in southeast Mexico, it is bordered by ...

, Mexico * Chiapa de Corzo, Mexico * Livermore, United States * San Cristóbal de Las Casas, Mexico * Santa Fe, Spain *

Santa María Huatulco Santa María Huatulco is a town and municipality in Oaxaca in south-western Mexico. It is part of the Pochutla District in the east of the Costa Region. The meaning of Huatulco, or Guatulco Coatulco is, "where they worship the tree", referring ...

, Mexico * Tapachula, Mexico * Tromsø, Norway * Turin, Italy * Veracruz, Mexico

References

External links

* {{Authority control Municipalities of the Quetzaltenango Department