Zunil

Municipality in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala

14°47′N 91°29′W / 14.783°N 91.483°W / 14.783; -91.483Country

GuatemalaDepartment

QuetzaltenangoGovernment

• MayorJose Maria Chaj (2012-2016)Area

• Municipality80 km² (30 sq mi)Elevation

2,076 m (6,811 ft)Population

(2018 census)^[1]

• Municipality14,118 • Density180/km² (460/sq mi) • Urban

10,792ClimateCwb

Zunil (Spanish pronunciation: [suˈnil]) is a town and municipality in the Quetzaltenango department of Guatemala with a surface area of 80 square kilometres (31 sq mi).^[2] The town of Zunil is located 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) from the city of Quetzaltenango, on the bank of the Salamá River.^[3] Zunil has an altitude of approximately 2,075 metres (6,808 ft) above mean sea level.^[3] The population of the municipality, which is 100% indigenous, was 14,118 at the 2018 census. The inhabitants speak Kʼicheʼ and Spanish.^[2] There are thermal baths with volcanic water around the town, for example Fuentes Georginas and Almolonga.

Religion

Zunil possesses active worship of San Simón (also known as Maximón), a life-sized mannequin representing a Maya god, sitting in a wooden throne, which is moved to a different house every year, and many people visit and leave gifts at his shrine.

Namesakes

A crater on Mars, which may be the source of Mars meteorites, is named after the village.^[4]

Gallery

Indoor market
Church in Zunil
Panorama of Zunil
Buses in Zunil

Notes

^ Citypopulation.de Population of departments and municipalities in Guatemala
^ ^a ^b Zunil at Inforpressca Archived June 6, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
^ ^a ^b Cattelan 2004, p.36.
^ McEwan, A.S.; et al. (2005). "The rayed crater Zunil and interpretations of small impact craters on Mars" (PDF). Icarus. 176 (2): 351–381. Bibcode:2005Icar..176..351M. doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2005.02.009. Retrieved 2006-09-08..