Guatemala

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Country Name

Guatemala or officially the Republic of Guatemala.

Location

Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, Belize and the Caribbean to the northeast, Honduras to the east, El Salvador to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the south.

Capital

Guatemala City.

Reason for Naming the country

The name "Guatemala" comes from the Nahuatl word Cuauhtēmallān (nahwiki), or "place of many trees", a derivative of the K'iche' Mayan word for "many trees".

This was the name that the Tlaxcaltecan warriors who accompanied Pedro de Alvarado during the Spanish Conquest gave to this territory.

Flag

The current Guatemalan flag was adopted on December 26, 1997. The flag of Guatemala consists of three even-sized vertical stripes the left and right stripes are sky blue, and the middle stripe is white. In the middle of the white stripe and flag is Guatemala's coat of arms. The coat of arms consists of a shield with two rifles and two golden swords tied with laurel branches, on a light blue field. There are also golden letters that read "Libertad 15 de Septiembre de 1821." Above, there is a Quetzal bird which is the symbol of the independence and autonomy of the Nation.