El Salvador history... from its early origins until today

El Salvador history, where to start; it dates back thousands of years but let's begin with the pre-colonial era.

El Salvador's ethnic origins have been studied by several Salvadorean historians and they concluded that in this region existed three groups:
1) the pre-Mayan group; 2) the Mayan group and 3) the Nahóa group.

Pre-Colombian:

It's believed that the Olmecs arrived in the area as early as 2,000 BC; In the ruins of Casa Blanca you can find an Olmec Boulder (a stone sculpture) which is similar to those found in Mexico. The Pipil indians who were direct descendants of the Aztecs likely migrated to the region the 11th century; they belonged to the Nahóa group.

The many Mayan ruins found in the area really enrich El Salvador history.

For example, you can go to San Andrés (on the right) in La Libertad; El Tazumal in Chalchuapa - Santa Ana or you can visit the Casa Blanca ruins also in Chalchuapa, these ruins are quite close so a visit to both of them is easy to do.

But there is one more ancient site that I want to recommend, this is the ruins of Joya de Cerén.

Joya de Cerén forms a very important part of El Salvador history; it is considered to be the "Pompeii of the Americas". This site was buried in volcanic ashes from an eruption and the level of preservation is superb; it offers a glimpse into what life was like 1,400 years ago. Let me tell you how this happened...

It was August about 595AD when the Loma Caldera volcano erupted in hot ashes and cinders and the inhabitants of the Classic period were living a mere 600 meters from the volcano's center; they therefore had to flee immediately leaving everything behind... food on the table, their homes, fields and all this lay forgotten until a bulldozer inadvertently opened a window into the perfectly preserved remains.

It is so well preserved that you can walk into a storehouse and still see the storage jars and the tools they used at the time. Walking into the kitchen you will find that the shelves are still stocked with beans and daily food items. It's just amazing, this is something you can't miss, It's an incredible sight where nature really did it's part in preserving so well this part of El Salvador's history, I definitely recommend it, it's a must see!

The Conquest:

The history of El Salvador continues, let's move forward to the time of discovery by the Spanish...

The area was first discovered by the Spaniard Andrés Niño in May 1522 who arrived in the coast of Conchagua and he named the area Golfo de Fonseca (Fonseca Gulf), this gulf still bears this name.

The conquest of the the area began in 1524 by Don Pedro de Alvarado who was sent by Hernán Cortéz. But the the native forces led by Chief Atlacatl defeated the Spaniards and they were forced to withdraw to Guatemala. The Spanish forces came back in 1525 and this time they succeeded in bringing the Pipil peoples under Spanish rule; shortly after that, Chief Indian Atlacatl was put to death for continuing to resist the invaders.

Chief Atlacatl is considered by many Salvadoreans as a hero for organizing the resistance forces against the conquistadors being that his only weapons were the bow and arrow! Still, it took the Spanish forces 3 tries to succeed in their conquest. In Antigua Cuscatlán - La Libertad, you will find a monument dedicated to this heroic native.

On September 15, 1821 the independence of Central America from Spain was declared in Guatemala. At this time, Central America became the "Federation of Central America" which was composed of 5 states (Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica).

In 1839, this Federation was dissolved and El Salvador became a Republic. General Gerardo Barrios (of Spanish and French descent) but born in El Salvador, fought to keep Central America as one united Federation but he failed and, like Chief Atlacatl, he was executed for his efforts.

In trying to ensure that he remains a part of El Salvador history, a monument was dedicated to Gerardo Barrios in a plaza that bears his name in down town San Salvador. Also the city where he was born was renamed Ciudad Barrios (Barrios city). This is a picture of him.

It's said that San Salvador is situated in what was called by the indigenous people "Salcoatitan" or "Valley of the Hammocks"for the frequent seismic movements in the area (yes, earthquakes are part of El Salvador history) San Salvador became a city in 1824 during the colonial years and it quickly developed into a flourishing, financial center.

Today:

Today, San Salvador is a beautiful, bustling metropolis where you can choose to either step back in time for a while and explore the history of
El Salvador, or stay in the present and visit the modern facilities also available there, like some of my favourite - the shopping malls!

In more recent years El Salvador history includes the civil conflict that afflicted the country between 1980 and 1992, although civil unrest begun earlier than that. This is the reason why many Salvadoreans migrated to other countries. In 1992 there was a compromise signed and a cease fire took effect.

I'm glad to say that although this is part of El Salvador history, it's not its present, and as I have attempted to show you, there is so many more great things that make El Salvador such a great place to visit.

Today, in more peaceful conditions, the world is able to explore and discover this beautiful destination!

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