Quiché Maya

Middle America and the Caribbeanintensive agriculturalists
Map
expand_more 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.

Identifier
Region
  • Middle America and the Caribbean
Subregion
  • Maya Area
Subsistence Type
  • intensive agriculturalists
Samples
Countries
  • Guatemala