List of Guatemalans
Encyclopedia
This is a list of Guatemala
ns who are famous or notable. For a list of Guatemalan Presidents see President of Guatemala
.
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
ns who are famous or notable. For a list of Guatemalan Presidents see President of Guatemala
President of Guatemala
The title of President of Guatemala has been the usual title of the leader of Guatemala since 1839, when that title was assumed by Mariano Rivera Paz...
.
A
- Abularach, RodolfoRodolfo AbularachRodolfo Abularach is a Palestinian descendant Guatemalan painter and printmaker focusing mainly on the human eye. He attended the Escuela Nacional de las Artes Plásticas in Guatemala City starting in 1947 and graduating in 1954...
, painter - Andrade, Sergio, musician (bassist founder of Lifehouse)
- Argueta, LuisLuis ArguetaLuis Argueta born November 7, 1946 full name: Luis Alberto Argueta Amézquita) is a critically acclaimed Guatemalan film director and producer. In 1988 He founded Morningside Movies, primarily producing TV commercials, including many for the Spanish speaking demographic...
, film director - Arbenz, Jacobo, military officer, former president, deposed by CIA and Guatemalan military
- Arévalo, Juan JoséJuan José ArévaloJuan José Arévalo Bermejo was the first of the reformist presidents of Guatemala. Preceded by military junta interregnum after a definitive pro-democracy revolt in 1944...
, first democratically elected president, Jacobo Arbenz was the second - Arjona, RicardoRicardo ArjonaEdgar Ricardo Arjona Morales, , known as Ricardo Arjona , is a Guatemalan singer...
, international singer - Asturias, Miguel ÁngelMiguel Ángel AsturiasMiguel Ángel Asturias Rosales was a Nobel Prize–winning Guatemalan poet, novelist, playwright, journalist and diplomat...
, writer, winner of the Nobel Prize in literatureNobel Prize in LiteratureSince 1901, the Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded annually to an author from any country who has, in the words from the will of Alfred Nobel, produced "in the field of literature the most outstanding work in an ideal direction"...
(1967) - Asturias, RodrigoRodrigo AsturiasRodrigo Asturias Amado was a Guatemalan guerrilla leader and politician.Asturias was born in Guatemala City, the first-born son of Nobel Prize-winning author Miguel Ángel Asturias. He studied law in Chile and travelled extensively through the Southern Cone...
, guerrilla leader of ORPA, a.k.a Comandante Gaspar Ilom, son of writer Miguel Ángel Asturias - Ayala Acevedo, AllanAllan Ayala AcevedoAllan Ayala Acevedo is a male track and field athlete from Guatemala, specialized in the 400m intermediate hurdles event...
, track athlete, national record holder in 400, 400 hurdles, and 1600 relay
B
- Barrios, Justo RufinoJusto Rufino BarriosJusto Rufino Barrios was a President of Guatemala known for his liberal reforms and his attempts to reunite Central America....
, General, leader of the Liberal movement, dictator, attempted Central-American union by force - Batres Montúfar, JoséJosé Batres MontúfarJosé Batres Montúfar was a Guatemalan writer, politician and military figure.-References:*This article was initially translated from the Spanish Wikipedia....
, writer - Berganza, EddieEddie BerganzaEddie Berganza is the Executive Editor for DC Comics.Berganza was born in Guatemala and moved to New York City at seven years old. He learned to speak English by watching reruns of the Adventures of Superman television series starring George Reeves, often shouting 'Look, up in the sky!' without...
, writer, Executive Editor of DC Comics - Bosch Gutierrez, Felipe A.Felipe A. Bosch GutierrezFelipe A. Bosch Gutierrez was born in Guatemala. He is a member of the board of Corporación Multi Inversiones , a large agro-industrial conglomerate which according to an article in El Diario de Hoy, one of the largest circulating newspapers in El Salvador, is one of the most powerful...
, international businessman - Bosch Gutierrez, Juan LuisJuan Luis Bosch GutierrezJuan Luis Bosch Gutierrez was born in Guatemala. He is Co-President of Corporación Multi Inversiones , a large agro-industrial conglomerate which according to an article in El Diario de Hoy, one of the largest circulating newspapers in El Salvador, is one of the most powerful corporations in...
, international businessman
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- Cardoza y Aragón, LuisLuis Cardoza y AragónLuis Cardoza y Aragón was a Guatemalan writer, essayist, poet, art critic, and diplomat born in Antigua Guatemala but who spent a good part of his life living in exile in Mexico....
, writer, essayist, poet, art critic, and diplomat - Carrera, RafaelRafael CarreraJosé Rafael Carrera Turcios was the ruler of Guatemala from 1844 to 1848 and from 1851 until his death in 1865. During his military career and presidency, the new nations in Central America faced numerous problems...
, general, conservative politician - Castillo Armas, CarlosCarlos Castillo ArmasCarlos Castillo Armas was a Guatemalan Colonel who came to power in a CIA-orchestrated coup in 1954. He held the title of President of Guatemala from July 8, 1954 until his assassination in 1957.-The coup:...
, colonel, politician - Castillo, Otto RenéOtto René CastilloOtto René Castillo was a Guatemalan poet and revolutionary.- Early life and activism :Castillo was born in Quetzaltenango in 1934 to middle-class parents...
, poet, guerrilla member of FAR
E
- Estrada Cabrera, ManuelManuel Estrada CabreraManuel José Estrada Cabrera was President of Guatemala from 8 February 1898 to 15 April 1920.Manuel Estrada forcibly took the presidency after the assassination of José María Reina. The Guatemalan cabinet called an emergency meeting to appoint a new successor, but declined to invite the General...
, general, former dictator - Espada, RafaelRafael EspadaDr. José Rafael Espada is the Vice President of Guatemala and a former cardiothoracic surgeon.Espada is well known in the Houston cardiothoracic surgery community. He grew up in Guatemala. From an early age he wanted to grow up to be a doctor...
, Vice President of Guatemala and former cardiothoracic surgeon
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- Galeotti Torres, RodolfoRodolfo Galeotti TorresRodolfo Galeotti Torres was a high profile Guatemalan sculptor.-Biography:Rodolfo Galeotti Torres was born on March 4, 1912 in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. He served as director of the Escuela Nacional de Artes Plásticas Rodolfo Rodríguez Padilla...
, sculptor - García Laguardia, Jorge MarioJorge Mario García LaguardiaDr. Jorge Mario García Laguardia is a Guatemalan jurist.He has been a tenured lecturer at several Guatemalan and foreign universities, including the Universidad de San Carlos in Guatemala City and the National Autonomous University of Mexico,...
, jurist, magistrate of the Constitutional Court, and Ombudsman for Human Rights - Gerardi Conedera, Juan JoséJuan José Gerardi ConederaMonsignor Juan José Gerardi Conedera was a Guatemalan Roman Catholic bishop and human rights defender who was beaten to death two days after releasing a report on victims of the Guatemalan Civil War.-Early life:...
, Roman Catholic bishop and human rights defender - Goldman, FranciscoFrancisco GoldmanFrancisco Goldman is an American novelist, journalist, and Allen K. Smith Professor of Literature and Creative Writing, Trinity College. He is workshop director at , the journalism school for Latin-America created by Gabriel García Márquez...
, writer - Gomez Carrillo, EnriqueEnrique Gómez CarrilloEnrique Gómez Carrillo was a Guatemalan literary critic, writer, journalist and diplomat...
(1873-1927), writer - González Palma, LuisLuis González PalmaLuis González Palma is a modernist Guatemalan photographer. Born in 1957, the artist grew up in Guatemala City where he later continued to live and opened up a portrait studio. He studied architecture and cinematography at the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala and then turned to photography...
, photographer - Gutierrez, Juan JoséJuan José GutiérrezJuan José Gutiérrez Mayorga is a member of the board of Corporación Multi Inversiones , a large agro-industrial conglomerate which, according to an article in El Diario de Hoy, is one of the largest circulating newspapers in El Salvador, and one of the most powerful corporations in Central America...
, international businessman - Gutierrez Mayorga, DionisioDionisio Gutierrez MayorgaDionisio Gutierrez Mayorga was born in Guatemala and was recently listed by Revista Summa as one of the 100 most important businessmen in Latin America. He is Co-President of Corporación Multi Inversiones , a large agro-industrial conglomerate which is one of the most powerful corporations in...
, international businessman
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- La Rue, Frank WilliamFrank William La RueFrank William La Rue is, as of December 2010, the currently serving UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, a position he has held since August 2008. He is the founder of the Center for Legal Action for Human Rights , a Guatemalan...
, human rights activist, UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression - Lehnhoff, DieterDieter LehnhoffDieter Lehnhoff is a composer, conductor, and musicologist.-Life:Born in Guatemala City to German settlers, 1955, Dieter Lehnhoff has been a pupil of Klaus Ager, Gerhard Wimberger, Josef Maria Horváth, and Dr. Friedrich C. Heller in Salzburg...
, composer, conductor, musicologist - Lubitch Domecq, AlcinaAlcina Lubitch DomecqAlcina Lubitch Domecq is a Jewish Guatemalan short story writer. She was born in Guatemala to an Auschwitz survivor father, and an Iberian-Guatemalan mother. After her parents' divorce, she moved to Mexico in the sixties and left in the early 1970s...
, writer - Lucas García, Fernando RomeoFernando Romeo Lucas GarcíaFernando Romeo Lucas García was the 25th President of Guatemala from 1 July 1978 to 23 March 1982...
, general, former President
M
- Mack, MyrnaMyrna MackMyrna Mack Chang was a Guatemalan anthropologist.She was born in Barrio San Nicolás, Retalhuleu department, to a mixed Maya/Chinese family...
, anthropologist - Marroquin, MannyManny MarroquinManny Marroquin, born 21 September 1971 in Guatemala, is a Grammy winning mixing engineer. His family moved to Los Angeles when he was nine due to the Guatemalan Civil War....
, Grammy Award winning mixer/engineer - Martinez, BenitoBenito Martinez (actor)Benito Martinez is an American actor most known for his role as police captain David Aceveda in FX Networks' acclaimed crime drama The Shield...
, actor - Menchú Tum, Rigoberta, winner of the Nobel Peace PrizeNobel Peace PrizeThe Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...
(1992), indigenous woman, activist, author - Mérida, CarlosCarlos MeridaCarlos Mérida was a Guatemalan artist.-Early life:Mérida was born in Guatemala City to a family from Quetzaltenango, boasting a Maya and Zapotec heritage which was often an inspiration in his art. He began studying music but became hearing-impaired due to illness. He then changed to the visual arts...
, painter - Mendez, FranciscoFrancisco MéndezFrancisco Méndez was a Guatemalan poet and short-story writer born in Joyabaj, El Quiché. He published his first poem at the age of eighteen, and moved to the city of Quetzaltenango shortly after. A self-taught writer, he went on to publish numerous volumes of poetry, including the celebrated...
, (1907-1962) writer and member of Tepeus Group - Milla y Vidaurre, JoséJosé Milla y VidaurreJosé Milla y Vidaurre was one of the most outstanding Guatemalan writers in the 19th century. He was also known by the name Pepe Milla and the pseudonym Salomé Jil....
(Salome Jil) (1822-1882), writer - Monteforte Toledo, MarioMario Monteforte ToledoMario Monteforte Toledo was a Guatemalan writer, dramatist, and politician. Born in Guatemala City, he played important roles in the governments of both Juan José Arévalo and Jacobo Arbenz, including periods as Ambassador to the United Nations between 1946 and 1947, as a deputy in the National...
, writer - Monterroso, AugustoAugusto Monterroso"The Dinosaur" redirects here. For the song by Was , see Walk the Dinosaur. For other uses, see Dinosaur Augusto Monterroso Bonilla was a Guatemalan writer.-Life:...
, writer, winner of the Prince of Asturias Award of literature (2000) - Moreno, GabyGaby MorenoGaby Moreno is originally from Guatemala City, Guatemala and is an award-winning singer, songwriter and guitarist. She now resides in Los Angeles, California.-Biography:...
, singer and songwriter - Mulet, EdmondEdmond MuletEdmond Mulet is a Guatemalan diplomat. He is currently the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and head of mission of MINUSTAH, having assumed the functions of acting head of mission in the immediate aftermath of the 2010 Haiti earthquake, in which the previous head of mission, Hédi...
, diplomat, head of mission of MINUSTAH
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- Palencia, Karl M.MyztikoMyztiko "El De Las Melodias Locas" is the first successful American reggaeton music producer. He is closely associated with reggaeton duo R.K.M & Ken-Y and reggaeton singer Cruzito...
, Record Producer (Pina Records), aka Myztiko - Palma, Gustavo AdolfoGustavo Adolfo PalmaGustavo Adolfo Palma was a Guatemalan singer, actor, and lyric tenor between 1936 and 1970, nicknamed "the Tenor of Central America."- Early years :...
(1920-2010), Singer - Lyric Tenor - Peña Aldana, Carlos Enrique, winner of Latin American Idol 2nd season
Q
- Quevedo, FernandoFernando QuevedoFernando Quevedo Rodriguez is a Guatemalan physicist. He was appointed director of the Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics in October 2009; he succeeds K. R. Sreenivasan, who was the director since 2003....
, Professor of theoretical physics, Cambridge, England - Quezada Toruño, Rodolfo, Cardinal, Archbishop of Guatemala City
R
- Ramirez de León, Arnoldo, guerrilla leader of EGPEGPEGP may refer to:*Edinburgh Global Partnerships, a student-run charity*Egyptian pound, the currency of Egypt*Ejército Guerrillero de los Pobres *European Green Party, a political party...
a.k.a. Comandante Rolando Morán - Raudales, HenryHenry RaudalesHenry Raudales was born in Guatemala and took his first violin lessons from his father Enrique Raudales at the age of four. Only three years later he made his début as soloist in a Mendelssohn concert in North Carolina, which attracted the attention of Yehudi Menuhin, who hired a television crew...
, violinist - Recinos, AdriánAdrian RecinosAdrián Recinos was a Guatemalan historian, essayist, Mayanist scholar and translator, and diplomat. Recinos was a great student of national history, mainly of the Maya civilization and the ancient history of the K'iche' and Kaqchikel people....
, Lawyer, historian, Mayanist scholar, essayist, and diplomat - Robles, RodolfoRodolfo RoblesRodolfo Robles was a Guatemalan physician and philanthropist. He was the first to describe Robles Disease -Biography:Rodolfo Robles was born in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala...
, physician, discovered onchocercosis (Robles Disease) - Rodriguez Macal, VirgilioVirgilio Rodríguez MacalVirgilio Rodríguez Macal was a Guatemalan writer, journalist, and diplomat who won various international and national prizes...
, writer - Ríos Montt, EfraínEfraín Ríos MonttJosé Efraín Ríos Montt is a former de facto President of Guatemala, dictator, army general, and former president of Congress. In the 2003 presidential elections, he unsuccessfully ran as the candidate of the ruling Guatemalan Republican Front .Huehuetenango-born Ríos Montt remains one of the most...
, general, dictator, stands accused of genocide - Rodríguez Beteta, VirgilioVirgilio Rodríguez BetetaVirgilio Rodríguez Beteta was a Guatemalan lawyer, historian, diplomat and writer.-References:*This article was initially translated from the Spanish Wikipedia....
(1885-1967), lawyer, historian, diplomat and writer - Ruiz, Carlos, Tiburones de Veracruz soccer player
S
- Sandarti, HéctorHéctor SandartiHéctor Sandarti is a Guatemalan television host and actor who was the host of the Spanish-language version of Deal or No Deal called Vas o No Vas on the Telemundo Network in the USA. He held similar duties in 2004-2006 for a Mexican version which aired on Televisa...
, television personality - Sandoval, KevinKevin SandovalKevin Sandoval Shanon is a former Guatemalan footballer.-International career:Sandoval member of the Guatemala national team who played at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, Korea., coming in as substitute in two matches, against Iraq and Zambia...
, Soccer player, 1988 Summer Olympics1988 Summer OlympicsThe 1988 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad, were an all international multi-sport events celebrated from September 17 to October 2, 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. They were the second summer Olympic Games to be held in Asia and the first since the 1964 Summer Olympics... - Tobar, HectorHector TobarHéctor Tobar is a Los Angeles author and journalist, whose work examines the evolving and interdependent relationship between Latin America and the United States.-Life:...
, writer/journalist
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- Tecún UmánTecún UmánTecún Umán was the last ruler and king of the K'iche' Maya people, in the highlands of what is now Guatemala...
, sixteenth century leader of the K'iche' Maya people - Turcios Lima, Luis AugustoLuis Augusto Turcios LimaLuis Augusto Turcios Lima was a Guatemalan army officer and leader of the Rebel Armed Forces . He died in 1966, in a car incident, when a bomb exploded inside his austin mini cooper....
, Guatemalan army officer, guerrilla leader (FAR)
U
- Ubico, JorgeJorge UbicoJorge Ubico y Castañeda was a Guatemalan dictator who held the title of President of Guatemala from 14 February 1931 to 4 July 1944.-Early years:...
, military dictator - Unger, David, author
- Urruela FedericoFederico UrruelaFederico Urruela Prado Guatemalan diplomat and lawyer.He graduated from the Rafael Landivar University and served as examining magistrate for several years before joining the Guatemalan Foreign Service in 1977...
, diplomat
V
- Villatoro, AntonAnton VillatoroAnthon Villatoro is a Guatemalan former professional cyclist. He attended the University of Colorado, where he raced with future US Postal teammate Tyler Hamilton. Villatoro won the 1991 Junior Tour of Guatemala, a gold medal at the 1994 Central American Games and placed fourth at the 1995 Pan...
, professional cyclist - Viñals, JaimeJaime ViñalsJaime Viñals Massanet is a Guatemalan mountaineer, the first Central American ever to climb the Earth's highest peak, Mount Everest, and the only person from that region to have reached the Seven Summits, the highest mountains of each of the seven continents.-Biography:Born in Guatemala City,...
, mountaineer (scaled seven highest peaks in the world) - von Ahn, LuisLuis von AhnLuis von Ahn is an entrepreneur and an associate professor in the Computer Science Department at Carnegie Mellon University. He is known as one of the pioneers of the idea of crowdsourcing. He is the founder of the company reCAPTCHA, which was sold to Google in 2009...
, computer scientist, creator of CAPTCHA technlogy, professor of Carnegie Mellon University
W
- Whitbeck, HarrisHarris WhitbeckHarris Whitbeck is CNN's International Correspondent based in Mexico City, Mexico. He covers key events in Latin America and around the world for CNN Worldwide, including CNN International, CNN en Español, and CNN/U.S....
, CNN's International Correspondent based in Mexico City.
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- Yela Günther, RafaelRafael Yela GüntherRafael Yela Günther was a Guatemalan painter and sculptor.- Biography :...
, sculptor - Yon Sosa, Marco AntonioMarco Antonio Yon SosaMarco Antonio Yon Sosa was leader of the Revolutionary Movement 13th November, a Guatemalan guerilla organization.MR-13 left the Rebel Armed Forces in 1969. Yon was killed by Mexican border police, in the Chiapas area....
, Guatemalan army officer, guerrilla leader MR-NOV13
Z
- Zamora, José RubénJosé Rubén ZamoraJosé Rubén Zamora Marroquín is the founder of three of Guatemala's most important newspapers, Siglo Veintiuno in 1990; El Periódico in 1996 and Nuestro Diario in 1998. Although he has generated great controversy in his role as editor-in-chief of the newspapers, he continues to edit the latter...
, journalist - Zuniga, DaphneDaphne ZunigaDaphne Eurydice Zuniga is an American actress known for her roles as Jo Reynolds on the Fox primetime soap Melrose Place, as Victoria Davis on The CW teen drama One Tree Hill and as Princess Vespa in Spaceballs.-Early life:...
, Guatemalan-American actress