GUATEMALA FACTS

Land Area: 108,889 sq. km (42,042 sq. mi)
Highest Mountain: Volcán Tajumulco 4,220 m (13,845 ft). Click here for more info on the volcanos of Guatemala.
Population in 1995: 10,700,000
Population Density: 98 persons per sq. km (253 persons per sq. mi)
Population Growth: 2.8% per year
Population Distribution: 60% rural / 40% urban, 55% Maya Indian / 45% Ladino
Religions: 70% Roman Catholic, 30% Evangelical
Language: Spanish is universally spoken throughout Guatemala. Mayan languages are spoken by 40% of the population and for many, Spanish is a second language.
Currency: The unit of currency is the Quetzal, made up of 100 centavos. The present exchange rate is approximately 8.10 Quetzals per U.S. dollar.
Electric Power: Electricity in Guatemala is U.S. standard 110V/220V 60 Hz, using plugs and outlets all the same as the U.S. In some parts of the country the voltage can vary quite a bit but this has improved a lot over the past ten years. Most wiring is two-wire with no ground.

Guatemala is divided into 22 departments (Departamentos). Each is headed by a governor. The departments are subdivided into municipalities.

Holidays of Guatemala
Holidays of Belize
Holidays of Honduras
Holidays of El Salvador
Holidays of Mexico
Religious Fiesta Date Calculator
Weights and Measures
Numbers in Spanish
Ordinal Numbers in Spanish
Street Addresses in Guatemala

Holidays in Guatemala and Neighboring Countries

Holidays of Guatemala

Holidays of Belize

Holidays of Honduras

Holidays of El Salvador

Holidays of Mexico

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES

Guatemala uses a mixture of U.S., metric and old Spanish measures.

Length and Distance

1 vara (the Spanish yard) = .83590575 meters = 32.91 inches
1 pulgada = 1 inch
1 pie = 1 foot
1 cuadra = 100 varas = 83.59 meters = 274.25 feet
1 milla = 1 mile
1 legua = approximately 3-4 miles (a one hour walk)
1 kilometro = 1 kilometer

Area

1 sq. meter = 1.431 sq. varas = 1.197 sq. yards
1 sq. vara = 0.6987 sq. meters = 7.521 sq. ft
1 cuerda = 32 x 32 varas
1 manzana = 1.7 acres = 10 cuerdas = 6987 sq. m = 10,000 sq. varas = 75,207 sq. ft.
1 hectare = 2.25 acres = 1.43 manzanas
1 caballeria = 45.12 hectares = 64.5 manzanas = 101.4 acres = 645,816.125 sq. m

Weight and Volume

1 libra (1 lb.) = 454 grams (1 U.S.pound)
1 libra (spanish) = 460 grams = 1.0144 U.S. lb.
1 arroba = 25 lb. (spanish) = 25.36 U.S. lb. = 11.503 kg
1 quintal = 4 arrobas = 100 lb. (spanish) = 101.44 lb. (U.S.) = 46.01 kg
1 metric quintal = 100 kg
1 garrafón = 5 gallons
1 onza = 1 ounce
1 grama = 1 gram

Dry Measure

1 fanega = 2 cajas = 4 cuartillas = 12 celemines = 150 lb.
1 caja = 2 cuartillas = 6 celemines = 75 lbs
1 cuartilla = 1/4 fanega = 3 celemines = 37 ½ lbs
1 celemin = 12 ½ lbs
1 cuartillo = one quarter of a celemin = 3 lb 2 oz.

Numbers

1  un/uno/una
2  dos
3  tres
4  cuatro
5  cinco
6  seis
7  siete
8  ocho
9  nueve
10 diez
11 once
12 doce
13 trece
14 catorce
15 quince
16 diez y seis
17 diez y siete
18 diez y ocho
19 diez y nueve
20 veinte
21 veintiuno
22 veintidos
30 treinta
31 treinta y uno
32 treinta y dos
40 cuarenta
50 cincuenta

60 sesenta
70 setenta
80 ochenta
90  noventa
100 cien
101 ciento uno
102 ciento dos
112 ciento doce
121 ciento veintiuno
131 ciento treinta y uno
200 doscientos
201 doscientos uno
300 trescientos
400 cuatrocientos
500 quinientos
600 seiscientos
800 ochocientos
900 novocientos
1,000 mil
2,000 dos mil
3,000 tres mil
9,000 nueve mil
10,000 diez mil
100,000 cien mil
200,000 doscientos mil
1,000,000 un million

Ordinal Numbers

Ordinal numbers are written with a trailing lower case "a" (feminine) or "o" (masculine) such as 1a (primera or "first") or 9o (novena or "ninth"). For masculine instances, a "degree symbol" is often used instead of the letter "o" like: 3° (tercero or "third"). Ordinal numbers are used as adjectives so they assume the gender of the object: primera avenida (feminine), primero cuarto (masculine).

Examples below are all shown as masculine. For feminine change the final "o" to "a".

Street Addresses in Guatemala

The streets in most cities and towns in Guatemala are arranged according to the old Spanish system of avenidas (avenues) running in one direction, usually north/south and calles (streets) running perpendicular to the avenidas, usually east/west. Street addresses are usually hyphenated such as 5a Calle 3-25, or 7a Avenida 9-44. The former signifies the address is on fifth calle between third and fourth avenida, number 25. The latter signifies seventh avenida between ninth and tenth calle, number 44. For info on how to read ordinal numbers, click here.

To keep the magnitude of the numbers down, larger towns and cities are divided into zones, each with its own set of calles and avenidas. This is handy because Spanish ordinal numbers are complicated and hardly anyone knows how to say ordinals larger than "19^th". You won't find 223^rd street or even 75^th street in a Guatemalan city since few would know how to say it.

Copyright © 1997-2009 Phillip Landmeier