Languages of Guatemala
A language map of languages of Guatemala, according to the Comisión de Oficialización de los Dialectos Indígenas de Guatemala. Castillian is merely another name for Spanish.
OfficialSpanish
IndigenousSeveral languages
MinorityGarifuna
ForeignEnglish

Spanish is the official language of Guatemala. Guatemalan Spanish is the local variant of the Spanish language.

Twenty-six Mayan languages are spoken, especially in rural areas, as well as two non-Mayan Amerindian languages, Xinca, an indigenous language, and Garifuna, an Arawakan language spoken on the Caribbean coast. According to the Language Law of 2003, the languages of Mayas, Xincas, and Garifunas are recognized as national languages.[1]

List of languages of Guatemala

Language Family Branch Native speakers % of total population Notes
Spanish Indo-European Romance 9,481,907 54.9254 Although Spanish is the official language, it is not spoken by the entire population, or else is used as a second language. There are twenty-four distinct indigenous languages spoken in Guatemala.
Kʼicheʼ Mayan Kiche' 1,000,000 5.7927 Language spoken in six departments: in five municipalities of Sololá, Totonicapán, Quetzaltenango, El Quiché, Suchitepéquez and Retalhuleu. Spoken by 11.31% of the population.[2]
Q'eqchi' Mayan Kiche' 555,461 3.2176 Spoken in Alta Verapaz, El Petén, Izabal and in El Quiché. It is spoken by 7.58% of the population.[3]
Kaqchikel Mayan Kiche' 500,000 2.8963 Spoken in six departments: Guatemala, Chimaltenango, Escuintla, Suchitepéquez, Baja Verapaz and Sololá. It is spoken by 7.41% of the population.[3]
Mam Mayan Mam 480,000 2.7805 Spoken in three departments: Quetzaltenango, San Marcos, and Huehuetenango. Spoken by 5.49% of the population of Guatemala.[3]
Poqomchiʼ Mayan Kiche' 92,000 0.5329 Spoken in Baja Verapaz and in Alta Verapaz. Spoken by 1.02% of the population.[3]
Tz’utujil Mayan Kiche' 88,300 0.5115 Spoken in two departments: Sololá, Suchitepéquez. It is only spoken by 0.7% of the population.[3]
Achí Mayan Kiche' 85,552 0.4956 Spoken in five municipalities of Baja Verapaz. Only spoken by 0.94% of the population.[3]
Q’anjob’al Mayan Q'anjob'al 77,700 0.4501 Spoken in four municipalities of the Huehuetenango department, by 1.42% of the population of Guatemala.[3]
Ixil Mayan Mam 70,000 0.4055 Spoken in three municipalities of the El Quiché department, also known as the Ixil Triangle: Santa María Nebaj, San Gaspar Chajul, and San Juan Cotzal. Ixil is spoken by 0.85% of the Guatemalan population.[3]
Akatek Mayan Q'anjob'al 48,500 0.2809 Spoken in two municipalities in Huehuetenango: San Miguel Acatán y San Rafael La Independencia, by 0.35% of the population of Guatemala.[3]
Jakaltek Mayan Q'anjob'al 40,000 0.2317 Spoken in Huehuetenango, by 0.42% of the population of the country.[3]
Chuj Mayan Q'anjob'al 40,000 0.2317 Spoken in three municipalities of Huehuetenango, by 0.57% of the population of Guatemala.[3]
Poqomam Mayan Kiche' 30,000 0.1738 Spoken in Guatemala, Jalapa, and Escuintla. Spoken only by 0.37% of the population.[3]
Ch'orti' Mayan Chol 30,000 0.1738 Spoken in two municipalities of the Chiquimula department (Jocotán y Camotán). Also spoken in a part of the La Unión municipality in Zacapa. Spoken by 0.42% of the population of Guatemala.[3]
Awakatek Mayan Mam 18,000 0.1043 Primarily spoken in the municipality of Aguacatán in the Huehuetenango department. Spoken by 0.10% of the population of Guatemala.[3]
Sakapultek Mayan Kiche' 9,763 0.0566 Spoken in the municipality of Sacapulas in El Quiché. Only spoken by 0.09% of the population.[3]
Sipakapa Mayan Kiche' 8,000 0.0463 Only spoken in the Sipacapa municipality in the department of San Marcos.
Garífuna Arawakan Caribeña 5,860 0.0339 A non-Mayan-derived language, this language, unique to the inhabitants of Izabal, is one of the languages imported into Guatemala via the black slaves Spanish colonists brought from other places. Spoken by 0.04% of the population of Guatemala.[3]
Uspantek Mayan Kiche' 3,000 0.0174 Spoken in the municipalities of Uspantán and Chicamán in the El Quiché department. Spoken only by 0.07% of the population.[3]
Tektitek Mayan Mam 2,265 0.0131 Spoken in the municipality of Tectitán in Huehuetenango, by 0.02% of the population of Guatemala.[3]
Mopan Mayan Yucateca 2,000 0.0116 Spoken in El Petén, by 0.03% of the population of Guatemala.[3]
Xincan languages Isolate Xincan languages 16 0.0001 A language not derived from Mayan with unclear origins. Some hypotheses suggest that the Xincan languages may have arrived from the South. Xinca is spoken by only about two hundred people in the Santa Rosa and Jutiapa departments, and is currently an endangered language, spoken by 0.14% of the population of Guatemala.[3]
Itza Mayan Yucateca 12 0.0001 Spoken in six municipalities of the El Petén department, by 0.02% of the population of Guatemala

References

  1. ^ "Ley de Idiomas Nacionales, Decreto Número 19-2003" (PDF) (in Spanish). El Congreso de la República de Guatemala. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 27, 2007. Retrieved June 10, 2007.
  2. ^ Datos de los Censos XI de población y VI de Habitación, 2002 Archived 2008-06-12 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Datos de los Censos arriba mencionados
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