Period+4+Group+4

=Country Name: Guatemala=

Group Members: Craig, Preston, and Wesley
media type="custom" key="330179"

__Cultural Features__
Craig

===Social Groups: the way I see it, in Guatemala there are Three main social groups. Of course every section will have sub-division. there are indiginous indians who stick to their ancestors traditions and rituals, the more reasent people that are more "tech savy", and I think the Mayan's are big enough for their own group because Guatemala is where most Mayans currently live.===

===Language: in Guatemala most of the people speak Spanish. Some native males also speak spanish But each native groups will speak in their own languge. Most native female Guatemalans never even get the chance to learn Spanish as they do not often attend school and have less contact with Spanish speakers. one indigenous group called the Garífuna speak English, creole, and Spanish.===

===Religion:freedom of religion is gauranteed but the main religion in Guatemala is Catholicism. But most indigenous people might mix with some Mayan beliefs. Devotion to the Catholic Church is declining. and more people (about 45%) are now Protestant, known generally as Evangélicos.===



===Daily Life:Much of Guatemala's daily life is influenced by other countries causing them to have different beleifs from each other. The nation's population is always being shown to the many different items from foreign countries always changing their way of life. Most products from soaps and boxed cereals to cars and bottled drinks, they will mostly have foreign marks on their label=== a woman doing her job ===Art:Guatemalas art is like almost every one elses art. Most of the art by the Mayans stands for a reflection of their lifestyle and culture. The mayan art was mostly painted upon paper and plaster, they would sometimes carve in wood and stone, make clay and stucco models, and earth made figurines based on different molds. And its pretty much the same for all of Guatemala===



__Physical Features__
Wesley

Land Forms

 * There are thirty-two volcanoes in Guatemala some of those volcanoes are active. One of the active volcanoes is the Pacaya volcano it is also one of the most active volcanoes in Central America. Another volcano is Volcano Tajumulco which is dormant but it is the but it is the highest peak in Central America, which is 13,845 feet high. About 2/3rds of the country is has mountains, but most is made up of volcanoes. Three other volcanoes in Guatemala are Toliman, Atitian, and San Pedro those three volcanoes border lake Atitian.**

Water Forms

 * Guatemala is bordered by the Pacific ocean. Lake Atitlan is know as one of the worlds most beautiful lakes. It is in the mountains parts of Guatemala it is surrounded by the volcanoes Toliman, Atitlan and San Pedro. It is also in the crater of a dormant volcano. Lake Izabal is Guatemala's largest lake. Lake Izabal gets it water from Sierra de las Minas and the Santa Cruz mountain range.**



Climate

 * Guatemala has a tropical climate. The time when its less rainy is in November or April. Its usally cooler in mountains because its alot higher up.** **The average tempeture for the mountains is 60s F/15-22 C**. **But it gets really hotand humid in the lowlands. Tikal gets very hot during the summer.**

Animals

 * Guatemala has alot of exotic animals. One of the most know animals in Guatemala is the Jaguar. Sometimes people get Jaguars confused with leopard because their color is so alike but the desin in the spot makes it different. Jaguars live in guatemala because of the the tropical climate. Jaguars are always found near water. Manatees(sea cows) are anthor one of guatemala's animals. There are also fresh water manatees they live in which live in Lake Izabal.**



__Current Issues__
Preston

Current Events- Heavy rain triggered a giant mudslide that caused a wall to fall and crush 5 children. The Guatemalan Congress rejected a bill that would have taken rights from over 40% of families.
===Government- Guatemala is a democratic republic. The current president is Oscar Berger is the head of state and goverment. They have 158 people in the Congress of the Republic. There is a Supreme Court but it doesn't work very well. The two biggest parties in Guatemala are; the Guatemala Republic Front and the Party of National Advancement. You have to be 18 to vote.===

===Economy- Women earn almost one fifth of the nations income. Over half of the country lives in poverty. Most of the population are farmers. The country currency is the quetzel. Coffee is the biggest export of the country. Tourism and manufactering are the other two biggest industries in Guatemala.===

===History- The Mayan Empire was very heavy in Guatemala in the 1100's. In 1821 Mexico annexed Guatemala and until 1838 when a thing called the Central American Federation fell apart. Until 1944 Guatemala had been ruled by military related dictatorships. From 1945- 1982 democracy was the kind of goverment they tried, but that proved to not work. In 1954 Jacoba Arbenz Guzman was over thrown by rebels, who were helped by the USA Military. In 1960 a civil war was launched and political balance was impossible until 1984 when a new constitution was written.===

===History-In 1986 Marco Vinicio Cerezo Arevalo took over power. In 1990 elections took place and the first change of power between to citizens. In 1991 peace talks began between the president and the rebels that had launched the civil war in the 60's. In 1993 the president tried to become a dictator by canceling the constiturion and the Supreme Court. As more people protested he was forced to leave and go to Panama. In 1996 the goverment and the rebels signed a peace treaty ending Central America's longest civil war, 36 years. In 2004 the goverment started paying payments to people who lost property or family members during the war.===

Flag- The Guatemalan flag has two colors. The blue represents the ocean of both sides of the country. The white represents the land. The national emblem is in the center of the flag. It was adopted on December 26, 1997.

===Six (6) Photos-    ===

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