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Kʼicheʼ (pronounced ; previous Spanish spelling: ) are
Indigenous peoples of the Americas In the Americas, Indigenous peoples comprise the two continents' pre-Columbian inhabitants, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with them in the 15th century, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with the pre-Columbian population of ...
and are one of the
Maya peoples Maya () are an ethnolinguistic group of Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica. The ancient Maya civilization was formed by members of this group, and today's Maya are generally descended from people who lived w ...
. The eponymous
Kʼicheʼ language Kʼicheʼ ( ; natively , also known as among its speakers), or Quiché, is a Mayan language spoken by the Kʼicheʼ people of the central highlands in Guatemala and Mexico. With over a million speakers (some 7% of Guatemala's population), Kʼi ...
is a Mesoamerican language in the Mayan language family. The highland Kʼicheʼ states in the
pre-Columbian era In the history of the Americas, the pre-Columbian era, also known as the pre-contact era, or as the pre-Cabraline era specifically in Brazil, spans from the initial peopling of the Americas in the Upper Paleolithic to the onset of European col ...
are associated with the ancient
Maya civilization The Maya civilization () was a Mesoamerican civilization that existed from antiquity to the early modern period. It is known by its ancient temples and glyphs (script). The Maya script is the most sophisticated and highly developed writin ...
, and reached the peak of their power and influence during the Mayan Postclassic period (–1539 AD). The meaning of the word in the Kʼicheʼ language is "many trees". 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 Nahuas, most of whom live mainly in Central Mexico and have smaller popul ...
translation, "Place of the Many Trees (People)", is the origin of the word ''
Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...
''.
Quiché Department Quiché () is a department of Guatemala. It is in the heartland of the Kʼicheʼ (Quiché) people, one of the Maya peoples, to the north-west of Guatemala City. The capital is Santa Cruz del Quiché. The word Kʼicheʼ comes from the languag ...
is also named after them. Rigoberta Menchú Tum, an activist for Indigenous rights who won the
Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize (Swedish language, Swedish and ) is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the Will and testament, will of Sweden, Swedish industrialist, inventor, and armaments manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobe ...
in 1992, is perhaps the best-known Kʼicheʼ person.


People

According to the 2011 census, Kʼicheʼ people constituted 11% of the Guatemalan population, accounting for 1,610,013 people out of a total of 14,636,487. The large majority of Kʼicheʼ people live in the highlands of Guatemala, notably in the departments of
El Quiché EL, El or el may refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional entities * El, a character from the manga series ''Shugo Chara!'' by Peach-Pit * Eleven (''Stranger Things'') (El), a fictional character in the TV series ''Stranger Things'' * El, fami ...
, which is 65.1% Kʼicheʼ and has a total Kʼicheʼ population of 622,163; Totonicapán, which is 95.9% Kʼicheʼ and has a total Kʼicheʼ population of 453,237;
Quetzaltenango Quetzaltenango (, also known by its Maya name Xelajú or Xela ) is a municipality and namesake department in western Guatemala. The city is located in a mountain valley at an elevation of above sea level at its lowest part. It may reach above ...
, which is 25.9% Kʼicheʼ and has a total Kʼicheʼ population of 205,228; and Sololá, which is 35.3% Kʼicheʼ and has a total Kʼicheʼ population of 151,992.
El Quiché EL, El or el may refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional entities * El, a character from the manga series ''Shugo Chara!'' by Peach-Pit * Eleven (''Stranger Things'') (El), a fictional character in the TV series ''Stranger Things'' * El, fami ...
forms the heartland of the Kʼicheʼ people. In pre-Columbian times, the Kʼicheʼ settlements and influence reached beyond the highlands, including the valley of
Antigua Antigua ( ; ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the local population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the most populous island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua ...
and coastal areas in Escuintla. Most Kʼicheʼ speak their native language and have at least a working knowledge of Spanish. Exceptions are in some remote and isolated rural communities, where the people speak only Kʼicheʼ. Maya languages closely related to Kʼicheʼ are Uspantek, Sakapultek, Kaqchikel and Tzutujil.


History

The history of the Kʼicheʼ people can be divided into two main historical periods, pre-conquest and post-conquest. Conquest occurred in 1524 with the arrival of the conquistador
Pedro de Alvarado Pedro de Alvarado (; 1485 – 4 July 1541) was a Spanish conquistador, ''conquistador'', ''adelantado,'' governor and Captaincy General of Guatemala, captain general of Guatemala.Lovell, Lutz and Swezey 1984, p. 461. He participated in the c ...
, who conducted war against this people.


Pre-Conquest

In pre-Conquest times, the Kʼicheʼ Kingdom of
Qʼumarkaj Qʼumarkaj ( Kʼicheʼ: ) (sometimes rendered as Gumarkaaj, Gumarcaj, Cumarcaj or Kumarcaaj) is an archaeological site in the southwest of the El Quiché department of Guatemala.Kelly 1996, p.200. Qʼumarkaj is also known as Utatlán, the Nahuat ...
was one of the most powerful states in the region. ''Kʼiche was an independent state that existed after the decline of the
Maya Civilization The Maya civilization () was a Mesoamerican civilization that existed from antiquity to the early modern period. It is known by its ancient temples and glyphs (script). The Maya script is the most sophisticated and highly developed writin ...
with the Classic collapse (c.300 – c.950 AD). Kʼicheʼ lay in a highland mountain valley of present-day
Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...
; during this time they were also found in parts of El Salvador. The major city of the Kʼicheʼ in the western highlands of Guatemala was
Qʼumarkaj Qʼumarkaj ( Kʼicheʼ: ) (sometimes rendered as Gumarkaaj, Gumarcaj, Cumarcaj or Kumarcaaj) is an archaeological site in the southwest of the El Quiché department of Guatemala.Kelly 1996, p.200. Qʼumarkaj is also known as Utatlán, the Nahuat ...
. It was the political, ceremonial and social center of the Kʼicheʼ people. The city covered an estimated area of 3.25 km2 across the Resguardo plateau. There is also evidence for a large degree of cultural exchange between the Kʼicheʼ and the people of Central Mexico. Linguists have found
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 Nahuas, most of whom live mainly in Central Mexico and have smaller popul ...
influences in the Kʼicheʼ language. Up until the 16th century before conquest K'iche were a literate civilization, creating glyphs and pictographs which helped preserve their culture.


Post-Conquest

The Kʼicheʼ were conquered by the conquistador
Pedro de Alvarado Pedro de Alvarado (; 1485 – 4 July 1541) was a Spanish conquistador, ''conquistador'', ''adelantado,'' governor and Captaincy General of Guatemala, captain general of Guatemala.Lovell, Lutz and Swezey 1984, p. 461. He participated in the c ...
in 1524. Their last military commander, Tecun Uman, led the Kʼicheʼ armies against the combined forces of Alvarado and his allies, the Kaqchikel. The battle took place in the valley of Xelajú (
Quetzaltenango Quetzaltenango (, also known by its Maya name Xelajú or Xela ) is a municipality and namesake department in western Guatemala. The city is located in a mountain valley at an elevation of above sea level at its lowest part. It may reach above ...
) where the Kʼicheʼ armies were defeated and close to 10,000 Kʼicheʼ died, including Tecún Umán. Tecún has since been an important legendary figure in the Kʼicheʼ oral tradition. After the battle, the Kʼicheʼ surrendered and invited Alvarado to their capital,
Qʼumarkaj Qʼumarkaj ( Kʼicheʼ: ) (sometimes rendered as Gumarkaaj, Gumarcaj, Cumarcaj or Kumarcaaj) is an archaeological site in the southwest of the El Quiché department of Guatemala.Kelly 1996, p.200. Qʼumarkaj is also known as Utatlán, the Nahuat ...
. However, Alvarado suspected an ambush and had the city burned. The ruins of the city can still be seen, just a short distance from Santa Cruz del Quiché. One of the main missions of the Spanish clergy during the conquest was to convert the Mesoamerican people to Catholic Christianity. Though they never fully converted the people, they did affect their language. The Kʼicheʼ people were one of the first groups studied by the Catholic missionary religious order known as the
Dominicans Dominicans () also known as Quisqueyans () are an ethnic group, ethno-nationality, national people, a people of shared ancestry and culture, who have ancestral roots in the Dominican Republic. The Dominican ethnic group was born out of a fusio ...
. The Franciscans established '' Theologia Indorum'', a Christian theology text written in the Kʼicheʼ native language and adapting K'iche' concepts to Catholicism. The text was meant to be a tool for converting the Kʼicheʼ and other Mesoamerican groups to Christianity. To accomplish this, the Dominicans attempted to change the meaning of some native words to better reflect their Catholic concepts. They also used similar word, sentence, and rhythmic structure to the ''Popol Vuh'' to create similarities between the texts.


Twentieth century

In the early 1980s, the government of Guatemala, under the leadership of
Efraín Ríos Montt José Efraín Ríos Montt (; 16 June 1926 – 1 April 2018) was a Guatemalan military officer, politician, and dictator who served as ''de facto'' President of Guatemala from 1982 to 1983. His brief tenure as chief executive was one of the blo ...
, carried out a massive campaign to quell both the rebellions largely organized by the Mayan people and the spread of liberation ideas inspired by the Catholic church.  Because the K'iche' are the largest Maya group within Guatemala, they became a major target of the counterinsurgency programs, which developed into what is now known as the
Guatemalan genocide The Guatemalan genocide, also referred to as the Maya genocide, or the Silent Holocaust (, , or ), was the mass killing of the Maya peoples, Maya Indigenous people during the Guatemalan Civil War (1960–1996) by successive Guatemalan military go ...
.  The tactics of the Guatemalan army to fight the insurgency ranged from desecrating sacred symbols and burning crops, to raping Mayan women, mutilating and displaying Mayan bodies, and coercing Mayan men into Civil Defense Patrols.  According to the Guatemalan
Historical Clarification Commission The Commission for Historical Clarification (; abbreviated CEH) was a Guatemalan government commission established in 1994 in order to investigate atrocities and human rights violations committed during the Guatemalan Civil War, which began in 1962 ...
, Maya people in Southern Él Quiché were 98.4% of total victims. Because of the disproportionate targeting of native peoples, the K'iche' people who inhabit Southern Él Quiché continue to be affected by the government's counterinsurgency programs.  However, scholars have pointed out the differences between Western ideas of trauma and the Mesoamerican understanding.  The Guatemalan
Historical Clarification Commission The Commission for Historical Clarification (; abbreviated CEH) was a Guatemalan government commission established in 1994 in order to investigate atrocities and human rights violations committed during the Guatemalan Civil War, which began in 1962 ...
has emphasized the need for mental health solutions that highlight community development and human rights.  Previous efforts to provide relief have included encouraging natives to provide testimonies on Ríos Montt's actions, reburying family members who were previously thrown in
mass grave A mass grave is a grave containing multiple human corpses, which may or may Unidentified decedent, not be identified prior to burial. The United Nations has defined a criminal mass grave as a burial site containing three or more victims of exec ...
s, and training community volunteers to accompany affected people and provide support.


Twenty-first century

Up until 2012, Ríos Montt served in Congress, which granted him immunity from prosecution. In 2013, Ríos Montt and his armed forces were charged with the massacres of 15 villages in the K'iche' area. Ríos Montt declared innocence throughout the trial, and was convicted for crimes against humanity and sentenced to 80 years in prison. Ríos Montt's conviction was overturned by Constitutional court due to lobbying by the country's business elite, issuing a retrial that was delayed when a judge recused herself. Eventually in 2017, the retrial began but since Ríos Montt was diagnosed with dementia, the trial was closed to the public, and Ríos Montt was not required to be there. He died in his home while the trial was ongoing, in April 2018.


Notable figures


Kʼicheʼ rulers

The origin of the elite Kʼicheʼ rulers is debated but scholars widely believe that the warlords traveled to the
Guatemalan highlands The Guatemalan Highlands is an upland region in southern Guatemala which lies between the Sierra Madre de Chiapas to the south and the Petén lowlands to the north. Geographic description The Highlands lie between 6360 ft and 13780 ft and are ...
in AD 1225. They began their migration after the collapse of the Yucatàn Maya center of Chichén Itzá, which is believed to have taken place around AD 1200. The elite warlords followed the Río Usumacinta drainage, the Río Negro, and Río Agua Caliente until they crossed into the San Andres Basin, where they began early Kʼicheʼ settlements. These warlords were in small groups that were very mobile and consisted mostly of men. They began to intermingle with the local Kʼicheʼ populations soon after their arrival. A chronological list of the rulers can be made by using generation lengths from the first ruler and so on.


Tecun Uman

Declared Guatemala's national hero in 1960, Tecun Uman was the last of the K'iche' rulers. His death on February 20, 1524 is memorialized each year by the Guatemalan people. This is done, in part, through the Dance of the Conquest, which tells the story of the natives' conversion to Christianity following the
Spanish Conquest The Spanish Empire, sometimes referred to as the Hispanic Monarchy or the Catholic Monarchy, was a colonial empire that existed between 1492 and 1976. In conjunction with the Portuguese Empire, it ushered in the European Age of Discovery. It ...
. K'iche' documents, such as the ''Título Xecul'', detail his immense wealth, stating that he wore quetzal feathers, rare gems, and abundant jewelry. Some scholars doubt the existence of Tecun Uman as a historical figure, citing stories of the leader flying as a
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 ...
or an eagle in K'iche' stories.  Other scholars claim that, instead, Tecun Uman's legacy is the result of a mythologized version of a historical figure.


Rigoberta Menchú Tum

Rigoberta Menchú Tum is an Indigenous rights activist who was awarded the
Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize (Swedish language, Swedish and ) is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the Will and testament, will of Sweden, Swedish industrialist, inventor, and armaments manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobe ...
in 1992.  As a young woman, Menchu began advocating for the women's rights movement through the Catholic Church in Guatemala.  She later joined the Committee for Peasant Unity (CUC) along with her father to advocate for better labor conditions for farmers. During the rule of General Efrain Rios Montt, Menchú protested the government's counterinsurgency programs with her family, claiming that they were the result of cultural and socioeconomic tensions. After her father, mother, and brother were murdered by the Guatemalan government for their involvement in these protests, Menchú fled to Mexico. While in exile, she published her autobiography, which highlighted the
Guatemalan Civil War The Guatemalan Civil War was fought from 1960 to 1996 between the government of Guatemala and various Left-wing politics, leftist rebel groups. The Guatemalan government forces committed Guatemalan genocide, genocide against the Maya population o ...
and the violence committed against her family and the K'iche' people. In 1996, Rigoberta Menchu became a UN Ambassador for the world's Indigenous peoples and helped promote the first International Decade of the World's Indigenous People. Since then, she has run for President of Guatemala in both 2007 and 2011 as a member of the left-leaning Winaq party but lost both elections by a large majority.


Luis Enrique Sam Colop

Luis Enrique Sam Colop is a K'iche'an writer who is most known for his accomplishment in translating the ''
Popol Vuh ''Popol Vuh'' (also ''Popul Vuh'' or ''Pop Vuj'') is a text recounting the mythology and history of the Kʼicheʼ people of Guatemala, one of the Maya peoples who also inhabit the Mexican states of Chiapas, Campeche, Yucatan and Quintana Roo, ...
'' from K'iche' into modern Spanish while bringing back the original poetry element. Sam was born a native K'iche' speaker and also learned Spanish. He attended Rafael Landivar University in Guatemala, graduating with a degree in law. He later achieved his master's degree in linguistics from the University of Iowa. Additionally, he holds a doctorate in English from the State University of New York with a dissertation on Mayan poetry. For his work on the ''Popol Vuh'', he received a grant from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation for advanced professionals.


Literature


Popol Vuh

One of the most significant surviving Mesoamerican literary documents and primary sources of knowledge about Maya societal traditions, beliefs and
mythology Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the ...
is a product of the 16th-century Kʼicheʼ people. This document, known as the ''
Popol Vuh ''Popol Vuh'' (also ''Popul Vuh'' or ''Pop Vuj'') is a text recounting the mythology and history of the Kʼicheʼ people of Guatemala, one of the Maya peoples who also inhabit the Mexican states of Chiapas, Campeche, Yucatan and Quintana Roo, ...
'' ("Pop wuj" in proper Kʼiche – "the book of events") and originally written around the 1550s, contains a compilation of mythological and ethno-historical narratives known to these people at that time. These were drawn from earlier pre-Columbian sources (now lost) and also oral traditions. This sacred narrative includes their
creation myth A creation myth or cosmogonic myth is a type of cosmogony, a symbolic narrative of how the world began and how people first came to inhabit it., "Creation myths are symbolic stories describing how the universe and its inhabitants came to be. Cre ...
, relating how the world and humans were created by the gods, the story of the divine brothers, and the history of the Kʼicheʼ from their migration into their homeland up to the
Spanish conquest The Spanish Empire, sometimes referred to as the Hispanic Monarchy or the Catholic Monarchy, was a colonial empire that existed between 1492 and 1976. In conjunction with the Portuguese Empire, it ushered in the European Age of Discovery. It ...
. ′The ''Popol Vuh'', from its creation to present day, has developed as an important symbol of Indigenous culture for both present-day
Guatemalans Guatemalans ( or less commonly ) are people connected to the country of Guatemala. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Guatemalans, several (if not all) of these connections exist. Guatemala is a multicultu ...
and people of Mayan descent. This sacred text has been used in religious and spiritual ceremonies, university studies, political movements and protests, and historical research into the lives of the Mayans and, more specifically, the Kʼicheʼ people. In 1971 it was declared the official book of Guatemala. The ''Popol Vuh'' has been used by people of Mayan descent in present-day Guatemala to defend their traditional lands and political rights in order to preserve their Indigenous culture. To this day, the ''Popol Vuh'' continues to be analyzed and studied to better understand the spiritual beliefs and practices of the Maya, and how these have shaped present-day cultures.


References


Bibliography

* * *


External links

*
Kʼicheʼ – an introduction
– article at ''
Citizendium Citizendium ( ; "the citizens' compendium of everything") is an English language, English-language wiki-based free content, free online encyclopedia launched by Larry Sanger, co-founder of Nupedia and Wikipedia. Larry Sanger had worked as paid ...
''
Allen J. Christenson's Kʼicheʼ--English Dictionary

A reversal, the English--Kʼicheʼ DictionaryRigoberta Menchú Tum
- article at Nobel Peace Center {{Authority control Indigenous peoples in Guatemala Baja Verapaz Department Quetzaltenango Department Quiché Department Sololá Department Suchitepéquez Department Totonicapán Department Indigenous peoples in El Salvador Maya peoples of Guatemala Mesoamerican cultures