Mam people

The Mam are an indigenous people in the western highlands of Guatemala and in south-western Mexico who speak the Mam language.

Mam
Total population
865,884
Regions with significant populations
 Guatemala842,252[1]
 Mexico23,632[2]
Languages
Mam, Spanish
Religion
Catholic, Evangelical, Maya religion
Related ethnic groups
Ixil, Tektitek
Woman of the Mame culture. She lives in Pavencul Ejido, Municipality of Tapachula, Chiapas, Mexico

Most Mam (617,171) live in Guatemala, in the departments of Huehuetenango, San Marcos, and Quetzaltenango.[3][4] The Mam people in Mexico (23,632) live principally in the Soconusco region of Chiapas.[2]

In pre-Columbian times the Mam were part of the Maya civilization; the pre-Columbian capital of the Mam kingdom was Zaculeu.

Many Mam live in and around the nearby modern city of Huehuetenango. The city of Quetzaltenango or Xela was originally Mam. Many more Mam live in small hamlets in the mountains of northern Guatemala, keeping many of their native traditions. Many Mam are bilingual and speak both Spanish as well as the Mam language, part of the Maya language family, the latter typically as their first language.

See also

References
  1. "Resultados Censo 2018" (PDF) (in Spanish). Instituto Nacional de Estadistica Guatemala. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
  2. Comisión Nacional para el Desarrollo de los Pueblos Indígenas (CDI) "Mames de Chiapas". CDI. 2006. Archived from the original on 2015-12-08. Retrieved 2009-02-26.
  3. "Radiografía del Pueblo Mam". ALMG. Retrieved 2008-05-27.
  4. Ethnologue report for Guatemala Archived February 3, 2013, at the Wayback Machine


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