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Maya Foodways of Guatemala

Indigenous

⚠ NOT ONE PEOPLE AND NOT ONE CUISINE. Guatemala is roughly half Indigenous, with over twenty MAYA languages recognised — K’ICHE’, Q’EQCHI’, KAQCHIKEL, MAM, TZ’UTUJIL, POQOMCHI’, Q’ANJOB’AL, IXIL, ACHI, CH’ORTI’, MOPAN, ITZA’ and more — plus the XINKA, who are not Maya, and the GARIFUNA on the Caribbean coast. The shared foundation is the MILPA: maize, beans and squash intercropped, with chile and herbs, worked to a calendar. From it: tortillas made fresh at every meal; TAMALITOS in husk; the great sauces — PEPIÁN (toasted seeds and chiles), JOCÓN (green, with tomatillo and cilantro), KAQ’IK (the Q’eqchi’ turkey soup, recognised as national intangible heritage); SUBANIK; and the CACAO beverages. ⚠ WHAT DIFFERS BY LANGUAGE COMMUNITY IS NOT FLATTENED HERE, and ceremonial use is recorded only as to its existence.

Atlas — where and when

Where in the world

Communities and languages

  • K’iche’ community documented
  • Q’eqchi’ community documented
  • Kaqchikel community documented
  • Mam community documented
  • Tz’utujil community documented
  • Ixil community documented
  • Xinka community documented

Languages: K'iche', Q'eqchi', Kaqchikel, Mam, Tz'utujil, Poqomchi', Q'anjob'al, Ixil, Achi, Ch'orti', Mopan, Itza'

What is recorded

  • Guatemala has over twenty recognised Maya languages and a population that is approximately half Indigenous, plus Xinka, who are not Maya, and Garifuna on the Caribbean coast. Maya foodways are recorded as plural rather than singular. The milpa — maize, beans and squash intercropped — is the documented shared agricultural foundation. Kaq’ik is recognised as Guatemalan intangible cultural heritage. Ceremonial use is recorded only as to its existence. documented
  • Classic Maya period: intensive milpa agriculture, raised fields and terracing across the highlands and lowlands. documented

Related foodways

This foodway relates to

  • part of Maya Foodways documented

    ⚠ Added beneath the existing Maya entity rather than duplicating it. Over twenty Maya languages, not one people.

Recorded as relating to this foodway

Recipes

No recipes are filed under this cuisine yet.