Suchitepéquez department

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Suchitepéquez
El Salvador Honduras Belize Mexiko Petén Huehuetenanggo Quiché Alta Verapaz Izabal Zacapa El Progreso Baja Verapaz Totonicapán Quetzaltenango San Marcos Retalhuleu Suchitepéquez Sololá Chimaltenango Guatemala Jalapa Chiquimula Sacatepéquez Escuintla Santa Rosa JutiapaSuchitepequez in Guatemala.svg
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Location of Suchitepéquez in Guatemala
Data
Capital Mazatenango
population 582.200 ( ber . 2016)
surface 2,510 km²
Population density 232 inhabitants / km²
Highest elevation South side of Pico Sto. Tomás (3,300 m)
ISO 3166-2 GT-SU
Website Inforpressca.com
Coat of arms of Suchitepequez.png
Coat of arms of the Suchitepéquez department

Suchitepéquez is a department of Guatemala and is located in the southwest of the country (Region VI). It extends over 2,500 square kilometers and has just under 582,200 inhabitants. The capital of the department is Mazatenango .

Suchitepéquez borders in the north on the departments of Quetzaltenango and Sololá , in the east on Chimaltenango , in the southeast on Escuintla , in the south on the Pacific and in the west on Retalhuleu .

National nature

Suchitepéquez still has a share in the Sierra Madre in the north . From there, the land, criss-crossed by numerous rivers, slopes gently to the south-west to the Pacific coast. The soil is very fertile. Due to the heavy agricultural use, the originally diverse population of wild animals has declined. The climate is predominantly tropical and hot, the rainy season lasts from May to October.

population

The original indigenous population mixed heavily with Spaniards during the colonial period. Quichés and cakchiquels dominate the northern highlands . The population lives in 20 Municipios ( large communities or districts ):

Mazatenango Cuyotenango
San Francisco Zapotitlán San Bernardino
San José El Idolo Santo Domingo Suchitepéquez
San Lorenzo Samayac
San Pablo Jocopilas San Antonio Suchitepéquez
San Miguel Panán San Gabriel
Chicacao Patulul
Santa Bárbara San Juan Bautista
Santo Tomás La Unión Zunilito
Pueblo Nuevo Rio Bravo

As a state administrative district , the department is headed by a governor sent by the central government . The Municipios are independent regional authorities with elected mayors and representatives of the people and are subdivided into Aldeas (rural communities) and Caseríos, Parajes or Fincas ( hamlets and farms ).

economy

The population lives mainly from agriculture, which is diverse due to the fertile soil and the different altitudes. Grown sugar cane , corn , cardamom , cocoa , beans , bananas , coffee , rubber and various citrus fruits . Crafts and the service sector are also important. Tourism plays a subordinate role.

In terms of traffic, Suchitepéquez is only relatively well developed in the north. Here the department is crossed in a west-east direction by the Pacific route CA-2, which leads to Mexico and El Salvador . At Cuyotenango a country road branches off from this route to the Pacific coast, at Cocales the national road 11 to Lake Atitlán in the northern neighboring department of Sololá . Suchitepéquez is also connected to Quetzaltenango and the highway to Guatemala City via the Pacific route.

Attractions

Suchitepéquez is not considered one of the major tourist destinations in Guatemala. Of the poorly developed Pacific beaches, Playa Chicago is known for its nearby canals. Nearby is the El Estero de Tahuexco bird sanctuary with its lagoon. The Municipalidad Mazatenango has a 100 hectare forest (Finca Dolores). The city itself is known for its colorful carnival . In San Bernardino there is a nature reserve and a water park . There are rafting opportunities on the Río Nahualate, and on the upper reaches of the Corredor Biológico de Chicacao you can visit a nature reserve with springs, streams, waterfalls and caves. In Chicacao, the Museo Arqueológico Francisco Chicajau offers insights into the classical epoch of Mayan civilization.

history

Suchitepéquez was part of the Quiché empire before Pedro de Alvarado's conquest. During the colonial period, Suchitepéquez formed the Corregimiento de Suchitepéquez administrative district with Retalhuleu . After independence from Spain , between 1838 and 1849, this area repeatedly belonged to the Estado de Los Altos , the so-called sixth state of the Central American Confederation . The administrative district Suchitepéquez was elevated to the department on October 16, 1877, but lost the area of Retalhuleu in the west .

The name of the department probably comes from the Nahuatl words xochitl ("flower") and tepetl ("mountain"), which as xochitepec means "on the blooming mountain". Alvarado's Mexican mercenaries gave names to various places in Guatemala, which the Spanish adopted in a modified form.

Web links

Coordinates: 14 ° 32 ′  N , 91 ° 30 ′  W