Recent estimates push the number of inhabitants to over eleven million.
More than half that total trace their origins to a rich pre-Columbian Mayan heritage. Though Spanish is the official language, some 20 Indian dialects are spoken. The extremely fertile Pacific region grows much of the exceptional cotton, sugar cane, bananas, pineapples, and other tropical fruit. Coffee, some of the world's best, is an important commercial crop in the highlands. Corn, rice, and beans, as well as wheat, are basic to the economy.