Escuintla

Escuintla (Spanish pronunciation: [esˈkwintla]) is an industrial city in Guatemala, its land extension is 4,384 km², and it is nationally known for its sugar agribusiness. Its capital is a municipality with the same name. Citizens celebrate from December 6 to 9 with a small fair in honor to The Immaculate Conception.

In 2002 the city had a population of 86,678. It is located on the border of the central highlands and the Pacific coastal plain.

Many of the names of the municipalities of Guatemala consist of one of two things: the name of a catholic saint to worship the day the city was founded or a description with Náhuatl roots. These influences are due to the troops in command of Pedro de Alvarado who invaded the region in 1520. These troops were composed of Spanish soldiers and indigenous Tlaxcaltecs.

The name Escuintla, comes from the indigenous language nahuatl «Itzcuintlán», which is a word composed of two words:

· «Itzcuintli»: means "dog"

· «tlan»: means "near"

Therefore, Escuintla means "place of dogs" or "near the dogs".

Escuintla used to be an important stop for trains going to Puerto San José until 2007.