The sword in the air By: Kajkoj Máximo Bá TiulThis Department contains 43 registered archeological sites, giving evidence to the great pre-Hispanic importance it had. In the municipality of El Asintal, Abaj Takalik, one of the most important urban centers of the pre-Classic period, was uncovered. The site has monuments dating from 200 AD through 126 BC. This is 166 years before the earliest dated pillars discovered in Tikal. These pre-Hispanic centers were sites of commercial and cultural connections among the settlements of the south, west and central-north. The Cueva del Encanto is a cavern in which were discovered archeological sites of the pre-Classic and Classic periods. Alejos, La Tortuga, San Juan Noj and Río Jesús, are other places of pre-Hispanic importance. Beginning with the conquest, the location was used as a transit point on the journey to Soconusco and Tehuantepec, or those points leading to the capital of the Province of Guatemala. The majority population during the Hispanic era was k'iche'. At the present, Mayan speakers are found in the municipalities of Retalhuleu, San Sebastián, Santa Cruz Muluá, San Martín Zapotitlán, San Felipe, San Andrés Villa Seca, Champerico, Nuevo San Carlos and El Asintal. The architectural and cultural legacy of this period is captured in the Catholic temples in the municipalities of San Martín Zapotitlán, Santa Cruz Muluá and Retalhuleu. During the Republican period, the Department of Retalhuleu was created by the Decree of the 16th of October 1877, taking into account the growth of trade and agriculture in the region, especially the cultivation of coffee. In 1849 the customs office was established in Champerico, making it one of the points of major importance, in Central America, as an entrance to the Pacific Ocean. The name of Retalhuleu comes from two sources: "retal", in the k'iche idiom, is interpreted as "sign" and "huleu" signifies "hole in the land"; by which one can define it as "sign of land". Another version of the origin of the name points to the era when Pedro de Alvarado arrived to conquer this territory. He was said to have made a sign with his sword in the air indicating the separation of this territory into two areas: the right side was designated as that of the mam people and the left side indicated that belonging to the quiché people. The Río Nil remains as the final boundary of what is the present-day departmental principality of Retalhuleu. 
Entrance to El Encanto's Cave in El Asintal. The Hispanic capital
By: Ofelia Columba Déleon Meléndez
The territory that today occupies the Department of Sacatepéquez pertains to the reign of the kaqchikel. The kaqchikel State was one of a dimension like that of the k'iche'. Their power was somewhat equivalent although their jurisdiction was limited. Pedro de Alvarado founded the capital of the Kingdom Guatemala on July 25, 1525 in Iximché, the kaqchikel capital, which he called Santiago in honor of the Apostle. The kaqchikeles rose in rebellion against the authorities in 1526, which led to the relocation of the capital to the Valle de Almolonga. This city was destroyed around 1541, and because of this the city was relocated to the Valle de Panchoy or Panqän (in the site we now find the city of La Antigua Guatemala) on March 10, 1543. "Panqän" means yellow in color, due to the color of the terrain or the abundance in this area of the caléndulas, chilcas and other flowers of this color. Panchoy means "large lagoon", coming from a legend of the existence of a lake in this valley. The city remained in this valley until July 29, 1773; the date the earthquakes of Santa Marta destroyed it. Following this it was relocated to the Valle de la Virgen or de la Ermita in which we find the present-day city of Guatemala. While the capital was in Panchoy it was a center of education and where the Universidad de San Carlos was established in 1776. Here lived the chroniclers, historians and authors such as Bernal Díaz del Castillo, Francisco Vásquez, Francisco Ximénez and Domingo Juarros. The poets Rafael Landívar y Caballero and Simón Bergaño y Villegas also resided there as did the fable writers Rafael García Goyena and Fray Matías de Córdova. Developing artistic activities were the architects Joseph and Diego de Porras and Luis Diez de Navarro, the sculptors Juan Aguirre, Quirio Cataño, Alonso de la Paz and Mateo de Zúñiga, and the outstanding painter Tomás de Merlo. In order to conserve works of great artistic value, on March 30, 1944, the Asamblea Legislativa declared Antigua Guatemala a National Monument. On October 12, 1948 the Congress declared it a Ciudad Emérita. In July of 1965, the Instituto Panamericano de Geografía e Historia declared it a Monumento de América and, in 1979, UNESCO declared it Cultural and World Patrimony. The heart of the Costa Cuca
By: Luis Villar Anleu
The Department of Retalhuleu is situated between the foot of the imposing Volcanic Chain and the Ocean, and is of such fortune that its highest lands scarcely reach 900 meters of altitude.
This region is comprised of only two geographic zones. The north is formed as foothills of the mountains and the south is oceanic coastal plains. Retalhuleu extends in plains created from the Pacific Ocean. One particular detail of its constitution is called zanjones. They are modest ravines, owing to the erosive process, that cut through the continuity of the plains and create a cosmos of special wildlife habitats. The zone ends at the seashore with an infinity of sand dunes, estuaries, deltas, beaches and a profusion of aquatic birds and other living creatures.
The plains, fanned by innumerable winds, are covered with rich volcanic soils. Originally, they were populated by dense tropical forests that now only persist along the zanjones. Another eco-system of the plains is the gallery forests, so called for the natural communities that have developed along the rivers that have their own identity and represent another wildlife refuge.
Some of the natural attractions of this Department are its beaches, such as Tres Cruces, El Chico, Manchón, Champerico and Tulate. One must also add to this list Encanto Cave that opens along the shore of the Río Nil. Relatively nearby one finds the site of Abaj Takalik, cave and center, with its rustic environs. Artisanry
By: Francisco Rodríguez Rouanet and Aracely Esquivel
Baskets
Among the artisanry in the municipalities of Nuevo San Carlos, San Felipe, San Martín Zapotitlán and San Andrés Villa Seca we find baskets of differing sizes and shapes generally made of reeds although they also use palm and tulle.
Plaits and hats
The plaits are made from leaves of palm, the best material for the creation of hats, and are the result of interlacing a determined number of narrow fibers. They are crafted in the municipalities of Asintal and Retalhuleu. Brooms are made from palm and straw and are hand-made by the men in Champerico.
Clay bricks
These building materials are crafted in the municipalities of Nuevo San Carlos, San Martín Zapotitlán, San Andrés Villa Seca and Retalhuleu.
Musical instruments
Guitars, violins and contrabasses are made of pine and cedar in the municipalities of El Asintal and San Felipe Retalhuleu.
Fireworks
The families in Nuevo San Carlos and Retalhuleu produce a variety of fireworks. Traditions
By: Carlos René García Escobar
Dance
With the neighboring Departments of Suchitepéquez and Escuintla, Retalhuleu makes up a region of the southern coast with important dance centers. In Los Doce Pares de Francia, the principal characters are Carlo Magno and the Rey Moro, who take different names such as Fierabrás, Botargel and the principal warriors of both, in distinct versions of the Moros y Cristianos danced in other regions of the country. The choreography of the dance is five hours of intense drama.
These dances have a narrow social, historical and political connection explained in the Moros y Cristianos. It remembers the triumph of the Castillan Christians over the Moslem Arabs and Moors in the 1462 recapture of Iberian territory. The dance of La Conquista is also practiced in the municipality of San Felipe Retalhuleu. It remembers the problems of the armed invasion that the Spanish perpetrated on the Central American region.
A relatively recent dance of a similar theme is also practiced. It is a variation of the Toritos also known as Los Mexicanos. The convites, or street dances, are practiced in the two municipalities of San Martín Zapotitlán and San Felipe Retalhuleu.
The particularities of the Carnaval found in Santa Cruz Muluá must be mentioned in reference to more modern dance. |