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There is probably no region in the New World that 
surpasses western Guatemala for illustrating direct 
relationships between culture and nature. Here is 
one of the largest concentrations of individualistic 
Indian populations, preserving much of its Maya 
background. This important cradle of pre-Columbian 
American Indian civilization, which is well docu- 
mented historically and archeologically, is centered in 
Guatemala and Southern Mexico. A great number 
of important New World domesticated food plants 
appear to have originated in this region. The maize- 
beans-squash complex was probably developed to a 
high degree by the Maya in the Guatemala-Chiapas 
Highlands before they expanded northward into 
Yucatan. There the civilization advanced, a unique 
example in the Americas of a high culture based on 
maize in the Lowlands. The explanation lies prob- 
ably in the long dry season (too dry for manioc) and 
the lack of streams for irrigation in the Yucatan 
Peninsula. 
With the invasion of the Spaniards in the early 
16th century and of European and North American 
industrial adventurers after the mid-19th century, 
new elements of blood and culture were injected, 
providing an excellent field for the study of accul- 
turation in its historical stages. 
In view of the great range of physical and cultural 
variables which enter the scene, the only adequate 
FIELD 
For purposes of comparison, to bring out various 
human relationships in diverse environments, three 
interrelated areas, each having quite distinct physical 
and cultural characteristics, were selected, one in each 
of the so-called ‘‘zones,” tierra caliente, tierra tem- 
plada, and tierra fria. These, which are treated in 
more detail in Appendix 1, are summarized as fol- 
lows: (1) low Piedmont—Coastal Plain (Patulul to 
Retalhuleu), (2) intermediate Lake Atitlan Basin, 
and (3) high Valley of Quezaltenango (San Juan 
Ostuncalco to Totonicapan). 
Piedmont—Coastal Plain.—The east-west extent of 
my survey here during the months of February and 
March, 1936, was approximately 35 miles (56 km.), 
from Patulul to Retalhuleu. This was extended in 
1941 westward to Coatepeque and eastward to 
Escuintla. Most time and effort were concentrated 
in the western portion of this section, between Chica- 
INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY—PUBLICATION NO. 4 
geography is microgeography. In this monograph 
an attempt is made to describe in some detail the 
material culture of Southwest Guatemala and to 
point out the variations and distributions in terms 
of the physical setting. Food, shelter, and clothing 
are examined as to their nature, sources of raw 
materials, methods and places of production, and 
their movement in trade. Native and exotic agricul- 
tural products and crafts are listed and described 
also with reference to the areas and communities 
which produce them, and to the smaller groups within 
the communities. Possible physical reasons for spe- 
cializations are suggested, and products are traced 
from producing areas to markets and consumers, by 
the routes followed and by the transportation means 
employed. Though ancient traditions are often the 
only factors which can explain economic localizations 
(and the almost invariable answer the Indians give to 
the question, “Why?’), emphasis in the field work 
was placed upon observable physical factors.) With 
these we may block out environmental limits within 
which human activities are subject to choice and 
once established, are maintained through tradition. 
Distributions of population, land tenure, culture 
areas, and settlement patterns are considered as 
related to relief, water supply, and other environ- 
mental elements, as well as historical background, in 
an effort.to explain the complex and varied cultural 
landscape. 
STUDIES 
cao and Retalhuleu, from as low as 200 m. (656 ft.), 
at Santo Domingo Suchitepequez, to as high as 1,000 
m. (3,280 ft.), at Santo Tomas la Union. I traversed 
the Lowlands by road along the Rio Tulate to 
Tahuesco, on the shore of the Pacific Ocean, in 1936, 
and to Puerto San José in 1941. In all, 24 towns, 
settlements, and fincas were visited and studied in 
more or less detail, including analyses of 12 markets, 
and a diagram of that of Chicacao. The largest is 
the market of Mazatenango, having well over 1,000 
vendors per week. 
This region includes the physical provinces of the 
Coastal Plain and a portion of the boca costa, up to 
1,000 m. Geologically and edaphically, it is mostly 
unconsolidated volcanic material, young eruptives 
1Two ethnologists, Sol Tax and Robert Redfield, have concerned 
themselves especially with social aspects in their studies of communi- 
ties in Guatemala, made as a part of the Carnegie Institution program. 
