Americans in Guatemala

Americans in Guatemala refers to the arrival of United States citizens who have settled in Guatemala, with various purposes as entrepreneurs, tourists and teachers of English. According to the U.S. State Department, about 6,417 Americans live in the country.[1]

Americans in Guatemala
"Estadounidenses en Guatemala"
Entrance to the old United Fruit Company building, St. Charles Avenue, New Orleans. Now houses a bank.
Total population
6,417 American citizens in Guatemala[1]
Regions with significant populations
Guatemala City, Antigua Guatemala and Panajachel
Languages
American English · Guatemalan Spanish
Religion
Christianity
Related ethnic groups
American diaspora

History

In the late part of the nineteenth century, there was a growing level of involvement from United States and Germany in Central America. During most of this century, the imports of Guatemala had been dominated by England, followed by France, Germany and the United States. However, in 1879, the United States surpassed France and Germany and in 1889, England.[2]

The United Fruit Company sought the help of President Eisenhower, arguing that Jacobo Arbenz had legalized the Guatemalan Labor Party. In 1952 he was presented as a dangerous communist. In response, the CIA organized "Operation PBSuccess" which consisted in training and funding of a paramilitary rebel army (Liberation Movement). This movement gave the coup of 1954 by overthrowing Arbenz.[3] Today there are companies operating in Guatemala as Compassion Guatemala, OLX, Aventours Travel Agency - Visit The Heart of the Mayan World, etc.

American influence in Guatemala

There is much American influence in Guatemala, from the language, religion, traditions and economic influence.

English

Guatemala is the fourth Latin American country where English is spoken. While in Guatemala only 5% of the population speaks that language, the Swedish company Education First, places the country in 4th place in Latin America in the knowledge of this language. The study establishes the English Proficiency Index (EPI), and places Guatemalans ranked 27th with a score of 47.80 (Lower Level), only surpassed in the region by Argentina, which was placed in 16th with 54.49; Mexico 51.48 (Intermediate) and Costa Rica 49.15 (Low Level).[4]

Protestantism

In 1882, under the presidency of General Justo Rufino Barrios, Frederick Crowe became the first Protestant missionary in Guatemala and officially received the Presbyterian pastor John C. Hill. In 1887 he replaced the Presbyterian minister Eduardo M, Haymaker, who worked in Guatemala over 60 years. By 1900 he entered the Central Guatemala Mission, the Friends (Quakers), the Primitive Methodist Church and the Church of the Nazarene.[5]

Halloween

The Halloween celebration was propagated in Guatemala in the 1920s, when U.S. troops deployed a military base in the current Campo Marte. During the 1940s, it spread to young people who had more freedom of expression during the government of President Juan José Arévalo.[6]

Mormons in Guatemala

There are also communities of American Mormon missionaries, who are mainly from Utah and Nebraska, there is a Mormon church in the City of Guatemala and Quetzaltenango.

See also

References
  1. The Embassy of the United States of America (Guatemala City, Guatemala)
  2. Association for the Promotion of Historical Studies in Central America (AFEHC) "A finales del siglo XIX, las relaciones comerciales y diplomáticas de Francia con Guatemala vivían ya en un segundo plano frente a la creciente injerencia de Estados Unidos y Alemania en Centroamérica. Durante la mayor parte de ese siglo, las importaciones de Guatemala habían estado dominadas por Inglaterra, seguida de Francia, Alemania y Estados Unidos. Sin embargo, en 1879, Estados Unidos rebasó a Francia y Alemania y en 1889 a Inglaterra." Guatemala, 2007.
  3. "La influencia de Estados Unidos en la política interior y exterior de Guatemala y sus consecuencias para los intereses nacionales en la administración Alfonso portillo 2000-2003" [The influence of the domestic and foreign policy of Guatemala and its consequences for the national interest in the Alfonso Portillo administration 2000-2003] (PDF). USAC. March 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 17, 2015. Retrieved May 8, 2015.
  4. In Guatemala 5% of the population speaks English Archived December 5, 2014, at the Wayback Machine
  5. Rios Paredes M., Reseña historica de las Iglesias Centroamaericanas, Guatemala, 1972.
  6. Halloween in Guatemala-History
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