Culture Name

Quiché Maya

Culture Description

The Quiché are a Maya people of the central-western highlands of Guatemala. They are milpa (hand-tilled maize, beans and squash) agriculturalists who also raise some cash crops and are renowned for their weaving. They self-identify by community, in which status is gained through service in ascending civil and religious offices, most prominently elected mayors and annually-rotating heads of religious societies. The pre-Conquest mythology and history of the Quiché Maya are uniquely preserved in the Popol Vuh manuscript, and some pre-Christian elements persist in their religious beliefs and practices.

Note

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Region

Middle America and the Caribbean --Maya Area

Countries

Guatemala

OWC Code

NW10