The Q'eqchi' are a Central American Mayan group who speak a number of different dialects of the Q'eqchi' language. Located largely within the department of Alta Verapaz, Guatemala, there are also lesser populations of Q'eqchi' Indians in the departments of Peten, Izabal, and Baja Verapaz, as well as parts of the Toledo District of southern Belize.
In the late 1980s the number of Q'eqchi' speakers was estimated at 350,000 in Guatemala and 4,000 in Belize. The Q'eqchi' inhabit a combined total land area of 12,000 square kilometers.
The Q'eqchi' language is a descendant of Proto-Mayan; it belongs to the Quichean Branch of the Macro-Mayan languages and is closely related to the Poqomam and Poqomchi' languages spoken today.