The Poqomam are a
Maya people
The Maya peoples () are an ethnolinguistic group of Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica. The ancient Maya civilization was formed by members of this group, and today's Maya are generally descended from people ...
in
Guatemala
Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by Hon ...
and
El Salvador
El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south ...
. Their indigenous language is also called
Poqomam and is closely related to
Poqomchi'. Notable Poqomam settlements are located in
Chinautla (
Guatemala (department)),
Palín (
Escuintla
Escuintla () is an industrial city in Guatemala, its land extension is 4384 km², and it is nationally known for its sugar agribusiness. Its capital is a minicipality with the same name. Citizens celebrate from December 6 to 9 with a small fair ...
), and in
San Luis Jilotepeque San Luis Jilotepeque is a town, with a population of 11,675 (2018 census), and a municipality in the Jalapa department of Guatemala
Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country ...
(
Jalapa
Xalapa or Jalapa (, ), officially Xalapa-Enríquez (), is the capital city of the Mexican state of Veracruz and the name of the surrounding municipality. In the 2005 census the city reported a population of 387,879 and the municipality of which ...
).
Before the
Spanish Conquest
The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its predece ...
, the Poqomam had their capital at Chinautla Viejo.
[Hill 1996, p.82. Carmack 2001, p.158.] The Poqomam that advanced further east, to the territories of present-day El Salvador, were largely displaced by the migration of the
Pipil people
The Nahua people, also academically referred to as ''Pipil'', are an indigenous group of Mesoamerican people inhabiting the western and central areas of present-day El Salvador. Although very few speakers are now left, they speak the Nawat lan ...
in the 11th century. The few Poqomam that remained in El Salvador live near the Guatemala border, in the departments of
Santa Ana and
Ahuachapan.
See also
*
Mixco Viejo
Notes
References
*
*
Indigenous peoples in Guatemala
Maya peoples
Mesoamerican cultures
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