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San Andrés Itzapa
Municipality and town
San Andrés Itzapa is located in Guatemala
San Andrés Itzapa
San Andrés Itzapa
Location in Guatemala
Country  Guatemala
Department Vlagchimaltenango.gif Chimaltenango
Area
 • Total 24.6 sq mi (63.7 km2)
Population
 (2018 census)
 • Total 32,083
 • Density 1,304.5/sq mi (503.7/km2)
Demonym(s) Itzapecos
Time zone UTC+6 (Central Time)
Climate Cwb

San Andrés Itzapa (Spanish pronunciation: [anˈdɾes itˈsapa]) is a town, with a population of 24,992 (2018 census), and a municipality of Chimaltenango, Guatemala. San Andrés Itzapa is in the eastern region of Chimaltenango, while the district capital lies to the north, Acatenango lies to the south and to the east is Parramos. The municipality cover an area of 63.7 km2, with a total population of 32,083.

Origin of the name

San Andrés Itzapa (Itzapa means flint) is an ancient town. The village is mentioned in the Annals of the Cakchiquels, written in 1571. The Spanish named the area "Itzapa y de San Andrés" in honor of their patron saint, the apostle San Andrés (Saint Andrew). The Spanish also called the area "Valle del Durazno" (Valley of the peaches), as the prickly pears common in this area resembled the orchards of home.

Organization

San Andrés Itzapa administrative organization
Subdivision Name Distance to
municipal
capital
(in km)
Villages Chicazanga 5.4
Chimachoy 10.5
Panimaquin 7
San José Calderas 16.5
Hierba Buena 7
El Aguacate N/A
San José Los Corrales 7
Xeparquiy 5
San José Cajahualten 9
San Rafael 12.5
Neighborhoods San Cristóbal N/A
Located
within the
municipal capital
San Pedro y San Pablo
Santísima Trinidad
San Antonio
San Lorenzo Norte
San Lorenzo Sur
Residential
communities
El Edén
La Primavera
Las Conchitas
Colinas de San Andrés
Canadá
Navideña
La Cuchilla
La Pinada
Los Encinos
San Francisco
El Stan

Languages

Both Spanish and Kaqchiquel are spoken, although migration from other regions has brought an influx of other languages, such as Kʼicheʼ and Tzʼutujil.

Flora and fauna

Palo blanco 1
Palo blanco tree

San Andrés Itzapa has several heavily forested areas, which include eucalyptus, poplars, pines, holly, oaks, cypress and other evergreen and deciduous species.

Plants found in San Andrés Itzapa include canaque, casuarina, conacaste, hormigo, grabilea and palo blanco, as well as varieties of aloe.

Animals include coyote, armadillos, mountain lions, tisote, lynxes, goyoy, kinkajou, squirrels, racoons, wild boars, dove, cayayes, pajuil, and pheasant.

Agricultural products

Wheat, cotton, corn, beans, avocado, chayote, beet, radish, squash, carrot, broccoli, cabbage, coffee and guaque Chile peppers are grown.

Crafts

The municipality is rich in the craftsmanship of leather goods such as knife and machete sheaths, sandals, articles of jade, tables and chairs, ropemaking, and others.

Celebrations

Feria 035
Dancing on Convite, 2005
  • Convite (the last Saturday of January)
  • Feria Titular (from 22 November to 1 December)
  • Corpus Christi (late June)
  • Corrida de Cintas (15 September)
  • Maximón (28 October)
  • Saint Andrew the Apostle (30 November)

Places of interest

Volunteer Organizations

  • DOCARE Clinic - An American non-profit medical outreach program operated by the American Osteopathic Association. This clinic was established in 2011 in conjunction with Guatemalan non-profit ASSADE, employs a full-time physician and nurse, and regularly hosts medical students and physician trainees from American programs as volunteer medical providers.
  • Maya Pedal - small local NGO dedicated to supporting rural development through the design and production of pedal powered machines, or bicimaquinas. As of September 2012, Maya Pedal recently underwent an organizational change, please refer to the website or Facebook page for more information.
  • Project Genesis- Local nonprofit that provides education and community development programs to the children of San Andrés and the surrounding villages. It aims to build a school and begin employing full-time teachers. The project currently relies on international volunteers, and was founded by Ricardo Armas who lives in Jocotenango.

Climate

San Andrés Itzapa has a subtropical highland climate (Köppen: Cwb).

Climate data for San Andrés Itzapa
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 21.7
(71.1)
22.6
(72.7)
24.2
(75.6)
24.7
(76.5)
24.4
(75.9)
22.5
(72.5)
22.7
(72.9)
23.1
(73.6)
22.5
(72.5)
21.8
(71.2)
21.9
(71.4)
21.6
(70.9)
22.8
(73.1)
Daily mean °C (°F) 15.5
(59.9)
16.1
(61.0)
17.4
(63.3)
18.6
(65.5)
18.9
(66.0)
18.1
(64.6)
17.9
(64.2)
17.9
(64.2)
17.8
(64.0)
17.1
(62.8)
16.4
(61.5)
15.5
(59.9)
17.3
(63.1)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 9.3
(48.7)
9.6
(49.3)
10.6
(51.1)
12.5
(54.5)
13.4
(56.1)
13.8
(56.8)
13.2
(55.8)
12.8
(55.0)
13.1
(55.6)
12.4
(54.3)
11.0
(51.8)
9.5
(49.1)
11.8
(53.2)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 3
(0.1)
4
(0.2)
4
(0.2)
37
(1.5)
113
(4.4)
277
(10.9)
199
(7.8)
187
(7.4)
263
(10.4)
139
(5.5)
36
(1.4)
8
(0.3)
1,270
(50.1)
Source: Climate-Data.org

Geographic location

San Andrés Itzapa is surrounded by Chimaltenango Department municipalities:

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