A French Guatemalan is a citizen of Guatemala who has French ancestry. Guatemalans of French descent make up the third largest European-descended group in Guatemala, after the German Guatemalans and

Spanish Guatemalan The arrival of the Spaniards in Guatemala began in 1524 with the conquest of the Guatemalan Highlands and neighbouring Pacific plain under the command of Pedro de Alvarado. After the conquest and the colonial era, more people came to the countr ...

s. According to the French embassy, as of 31 December 2010, there are 803 French citizens in Guatemala.Répartition par pays de la population française inscrite au registre au 31 décembre 2010

Ministère des Affaires étrangères et du Développement international The Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs () is the ministry of the Government of France that handles France's foreign relations. Since 1855, its headquarters have been located at 37 Quai d'Orsay, close to the National Assembly. The term Q ...

History

The history of the French in Guatemala is divided into three periods of migratory waves.

The late eighteenth century

After the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...

, capitalists and entrepreneurs came to create coffee plantations in several countries of

the Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with th ...

; in Guatemala, the first of these were situated in the department of San Marcos in the southern

highlands Highland is a broad term for areas of higher elevation, such as a mountain range or mountainous plateau. Highland, Highlands, or The Highlands, may also refer to: Places Albania * Dukagjin Highlands Armenia * Armenian Highlands Australia * So ...

. The French Revolution introduced new political concepts and aims which formed the basis for the platforms of the liberal, radical and democratic parties of most of the world and therefore of Guatemala. These ideas had great influence on revolutionary movements on Hispanic America.

Independence era

French veterans of the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

and the

Spanish American wars of independence The Spanish American wars of independence (25 September 1808 – 29 September 1833; es, Guerras de independencia hispanoamericanas) were numerous wars in Spanish America with the aim of political independence from Spanish rule during the early ...

(such as Nicolas Raoul, Isidoro Saget, and Henri Terralonge) offered their services during the independence wars.''Asociación para el Fomento de los Estudios Históricos en Centroamérica (AFEHC)'
Relaciones entre Francia y Guatemala (1823-1954)
Guatemala, 2007. Retrieved 4 December 2014. Initial diplomatic contact between France and Central America began in 1827; full diplomatic relations were established in 1830. This led to the arrival of French merchants, professionals, and tradesmen. Many of them married local women, which led to an increase in the number of Guatemalan people of French descent. Later some French politicians moved to

Guatemala City Guatemala City ( es, Ciudad de Guatemala), known locally as Guatemala or Guate, is the capital and largest city of Guatemala, and the most populous urban area in Central America. The city is located in the south-central part of the country, ne ...

during the wars between liberals and

conservatives Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

. When the

Federal Republic of Central America The Federal Republic of Central America ( es, República Federal de Centroamérica), originally named the United Provinces of Central America ( es, Provincias Unidas del Centro de América), and sometimes simply called Central America, in it ...

was divided, some French migrated to Costa Rica and

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean Sea, Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to ...

although the majority remained in Guatemala.

Twentieth century

It is estimated that by 1900 there were approximately 8,000 French immigrants in

Mesoamerica Mesoamerica is a historical region and cultural area in southern North America and most of Central America. It extends from approximately central Mexico through Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and northern Costa Rica. W ...

, three fourths of them in

Mexico Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...

and nearly a fifth in Guatemala. The presidency of General José María Reina Barrios, who was educated in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

, began a revival of diplomatic relations between

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

and

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

. In 1920, after the triumph of the Unionist movement, several Guatemalan families of French origin came together to found a branch the Alliance Francaise in

Demography

Many Guatemalans of French descent still preserve the

French language French ( or ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. It descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire, as did all Romance languages. French evolved from Gallo-Romance, the Latin spoken in Gaul, and more specifically in ...

and customs and traditions of

. A large majority belong to the

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

religion, though there are

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

and Muslim minorities. Over 800 French people are estimated to live in Guatemala, making it the third largest French community in

, behind

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...

and Costa Rica.

Notable French Guatemalans

* Alberto Fuentes Mohr (1927-1979) economist and politician, served as finance and foreign minister during the 1960s and was assassinated on 25 January 1979 for his social democratic ideas during the right-wing military repression of the General Romeo Lucas regime. His grandfather was Guillaume Mohr Laurent, French migrant and one of the pioneers in the cultivation of coffee on the Pacific Coast of Guatemala. *

Edmond Mulet Edmond Auguste Mulet Lesieur (born 13 March 1951) is a Guatemalan diplomat, lawyer and notary public. He was appointed Head of the independent three-member panel to lead the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW)-United Nat ...

, Guatemalan diplomat. Last Chief of Staff to former United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. * Enrique Gómez Carrillo, writer, descendant of French great-grandfather * Consuelo de Sánchez Latour (1924-2015), writer, chronicler, and journalist. * Oscar Isaac Hernández Estrada, singer, actor, Golden Globe Award nominee, descendant of French great-grandmother * Harold Caballeros, evangelical pastor whose mother has French ancestry * Francisca Aparicio de Roda, wife of

Justo Rufino Barrios Justo Rufino Barrios Auyón (19 July 1835 – 2 April 1885) was a Guatemalan politician and military general who served as President of Guatemala from 1873 to his death in 1885. He was known for his liberal reforms and his attempts to reu ...

, of Spanish, French and Swiss origin. * Walter Claverí, footballer and football coach, descendant of French grandfather.

Guatemala–France relations

The language and arts

The

Alliance Française 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 ...

and the Lycée Français Jules Verne are dedicated to the promotion of

French culture The culture of France has been shaped by geography, by historical events, and by foreign and internal forces and groups. France, and in particular Paris, has played an important role as a center of high culture since the 17th century and from t ...

and

Francophonie Francophonie is the quality of speaking French. The term designates the ensemble of people, organisations and governments that share the use of French on a daily basis and as administrative language, teaching language or chosen language. The t ...

in Guatemala in its various expressions: performing arts (music, theater, dance), visual arts (exhibitions, performances, film), lectures, discussions (literature, debates) and training (workshops, residences).

The French Embassy in Guatemala

The French Embassy in Guatemala is responsible for maintaining both cultural and diplomatic relations between

and Guatemala. It provides grants and scholarships for study in France. The current French ambassador to Guatemala is Philippe Franc.

French and Franco-Guatemalan associations

There are several associations: *Sección local de la Union de Franceses del Extranjero (UFE) *Sociedad Francesa de Beneficencia (SFB) *Guatem’accueil *Asociación de ex-estudiantes en Francia (AEF) *Establecimiento escolar francés Lycée Jules Verne *Alianza francesa de Guatemala *Alianza francesa de la Antigua *Alianza francesa de Quetzaltenango *Antena del Centro francés de Estudios Mexicanos y Centroamericanos (CEMCA)

Education

Lycée Français Jules Verne, a French international school, is located in Fraijanes, Guatemala.Lieu et accès
" ''Lycée Français Jules Verne''. Retrieved on 18 January 2015. ""1^a Avenida 2-62 Zona1, Aldea Don Justo Km. 18.5 a San Jose Pinula 01062 FRAIJANES"

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:French Immigration To Guatemala Immigration to Guatemala European Guatemalan Guatemalan people of French descent