Guatemala - Geography
Here, let us take a look at the Geography of Guatemala.
note 1: despite having both eastern and western coastlines (Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean respectively), there are no natural harbors on the west coast
note 2: Guatemala is one of the countries along the Ring of Fire, a belt of active volcanoes and earthquake epicenters bordering the Pacific Ocean; up to 90% of the world's earthquakes and some 75% of the world's volcanoes occur within the Ring of Fire
. Mother's mean age at first birth is 20.6 years (2014/15 est.) (Note: data represents median age at first birth among women 25-49), whereas, the Maternal mortality ratio is 96 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)Geographical data of Guatemala
| Location | Central America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between El Salvador and Mexico, and bordering the Gulf of Honduras (Caribbean Sea) between Honduras and Belize |
|---|---|
| Geographic coordinates | 15 30 N, 90 15 W |
| Map references | Central America and the Caribbean |
| Tarrain | two east-west trending mountain chains divide the country into three regions: the mountainous highlands, the Pacific coast south of mountains, and the vast northern Peten lowlands |
| Natural Resources | petroleum, nickel, rare woods, fish, chicle, hydropower |
| Natural Hazards | numerous volcanoes in mountains, with occasional violent earthquakes; Caribbean coast extremely susceptible to hurricanes and other tropical storms volcanism: significant volcanic activity in the Sierra Madre range; Santa Maria (3,772 m) has been deemed a Decade Volcano by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior, worthy of study due to its explosive history and close proximity to human populations; Pacaya (2,552 m), which erupted in May 2010 causing an ashfall on Guatemala City and prompting evacuations, is one of the country's most active volcanoes with frequent eruptions since 1965; other historically active volcanoes include Acatenango, Almolonga, Atitlan, Fuego, and Tacana; see note 2 under "Geography - note" |
| Irrigated Land | 3,375 sq km (2012) |
| Major rivers (by length in km) | |
| Major aquifers | |
| Land Boundaries | 1,667 km |
| Border Countries | Belize 266 km; El Salvador 199 km; Honduras 244 km; Mexico 958 km |
| Coastline | 400 km |
| Climate | tropical; hot, humid in lowlands; cooler in highlands |
| Area | |
| Total Area | |
| Land Area | 107,159 sq km |
| Water Area | 1,730 sq km |
| comparative Area | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania |
| Maritime Claims | |
| Territorial sea | 12 nm |
| Exclusive economic zone | 200 nm |
| Continental shelf | 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
| Elevations | |
| Highest point | Volcan Tajumulco (highest point in Central America) 4,220 m |
| Lowest point | Pacific Ocean 0 m |
| Mean elevation | 759 m |
| Land Use | |
| Agricultural land | 41.2% (2018 est.) |
| Agricultural land: arable land | arable land: 14.2% (2018 est.) |
| Agricultural land: permanent crops | permanent crops: 8.8% (2018 est.) |
| Agricultural land: permanent pasture | permanent pasture: 18.2% (2018 est.) |
| Forest | 33.6% (2018 est.) |
| Other | 25.2% (2018 est.) |
Population Distribution
The vast majority of the populace resides in the southern half of the country, particularly in the mountainous regions; more than half of the population lives in rural areas
People and Society
In Guatemala, the different Ethnic groups are such that we have: Mestizo (mixed Indigenous-Spanish - in local Spanish called Ladino) 56%, Maya 41.7%, Xinca (Indigenous, non-Maya) 1.8%, African descent 0.2%, Garifuna (mixed West and Central African, Island Carib, and Arawak) 0.1%, foreign 0.2% (2018 est.)
| Population | |
|---|---|
| Pop growth rate | 1.49% (2024 est.) |
| Birth rate | 21.4 births/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Death rate | 4.9 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Health expenditure | 6.5% of GDP (2020) |
| Physicians Density | |
| Hospital bed Density | 0.4 beds/1,000 population (2017) |
| Total fertility rate | 2.52 children born/woman (2024 est.) |
| Gross reproduction rate | 1.23 (2024 est.) |
| Contraceptive prevalence rate | 60.6% (2014/15) |
| Est married women (ages 15-49) | 57.2% (2023 est.) |
| Literacy | age 15 and over can read and write |
| Education expenditures | 3.1% of GDP (2021 est.) |
| Net Migration rate | -1.6 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.) |
| Nationality | Guatemalan | Guatemalan(s) |
| Languages | |
| Religions | Evangelical 45.7%, Roman Catholic 42.4%, none 11%, unspecified 0.9% (2023 est.) |
| Age Structure | |
| 0-14 years | 31.5% (male 2,925,079/female 2,819,927) |
| 15-64 years | 63.2% (male 5,688,500/female 5,839,958) |
| 65 years and over | 5.4% (2024 est.) (male 437,105/female 544,647) |
| Dependency Ratios | |
| Total dependency ratio | 60.9 |
| Youth dependency ratio | 53 |
| Elderly dependency ratio | 7.9 |
| Potential support ratio | 12.7 (2021 est.) |
| Median Age | |
| Total | 24.8 years (2024 est.) |
| Male | 24.2 years |
| Female | 25.4 years |
| Urbanization | |
| Urban population | 53.1% of total population (2023) |
| Rate of urbanization | 2.59% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.) |
| Major urban areas (Pop) | 3.095 million GUATEMALA CITY (capital) (2023). |
| Sex Ratio | |
| At birth | 1.05 male(s)/female |
| 0-14 years | 1.04 male(s)/female |
| 15-64 years | 0.97 male(s)/female |
| 65 years and over | 0.8 male(s)/female |
| Total population | 0.98 male(s)/female (2024 est.) |
| Infant Motality | |
| Total | 25 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.) |
| Male | 28.1 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Female | 21.7 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Life Expectancy at birth | |
| Total population | 73.5 years (2024 est.) |
| Male | 71.5 years |
| Female | 75.6 years |
| Drinking Water Sources | |
| Improved: urban | urban: 97.9% of population |
| Improved: rural | rural: 92.2% of population |
| Improved: total | total: 95% of population |
| Unimproved: urban | urban: 2.1% of population |
| Unimproved: rural | rural: 8% of population |
| Unimproved: total | total: 5% of population (2020 est.) |
| Sanitation facility acess | |
| Improved: urban | urban: 90.4% of population |
| Improved: rural | rural: 66.3% of population |
| Improved: total | total: 78.8% of population |
| Unimproved: urban | urban: 9.6% of population |
| Unimproved: rural | rural: 33.7% of population |
| Unimproved: total | total: 21.2% of population (2020 est.) |
| Major Infectious diseases | |
| Degree of risk | high (2023) |
| Food or waterborne diseases | bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever |
| Vectorborne diseases | dengue fever and malaria |
| Alcohol consumption per capita | |
| Total | 1.63 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Beer | 0.9 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Wine | 0.05 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Spirits | 0.68 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Other alcohols | 0.01 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.) |
| Tobacco use | |
| Total | 10.9% (2020 est.) |
| Male | 20.1% (2020 est.) |
| Female | 1.6% (2020 est.) |
Demographic profile
Guatemala is a predominantly poor country that struggles in several areas of health and development, including infant, child, and maternal mortality, malnutrition, literacy, and contraceptive awareness and use. The country's large indigenous population is disproportionately affected. Guatemala is the most populous country in Central America and has the highest fertility rate in Latin America. It also has the highest population growth rate in Latin America, which is likely to continue because of its large reproductive-age population and high birth rate. Almost half of Guatemala's population is under age 19, making it the youngest population in Latin America. Guatemala's total fertility rate has slowly declined during the last few decades due in part to limited government-funded health programs. However, the birth rate is still more close to three children per woman and is markedly higher among its rural and indigenous populations.
Guatemalans have a history of emigrating legally and illegally to Mexico, the United States, and Canada because of a lack of economic opportunity, political instability, and natural disasters. Emigration, primarily to the United States, escalated during the 1960 to 1996 civil war and accelerated after a peace agreement was signed. Thousands of Guatemalans who fled to Mexico returned after the war, but labor migration to southern Mexico continues.
All Important Facts about Guatemala
Want to know more about Guatemala? Check all different factbooks for Guatemala below.
