The highland Kʼicheʼ states in the pre-Columbian era are associated with the ancient Maya civilization, and reached the peak of their power and influence during the Mayan Postclassic period (c. 950–1539 AD).

Rigoberta Menchú Tum, an activist for Indigenous rights who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1992, is perhaps the best-known Kʼicheʼ person.

In pre-Columbian times, the Kʼicheʼ settlements and influence reached beyond the highlands, including the valley of Antigua and coastal areas in Escuintla.

The Franciscans established Theologia Indorum, a Christian theology text written in the Kʼicheʼ native language and adapting K'iche' concepts to Catholicism.

[9] In the early 1980s, the government of Guatemala, under the leadership of Efraín Ríos Montt, carried out a massive campaign to quell both the rebellions largely organized by the Mayan people[11] and the spread of liberation ideas inspired by the Catholic church.

[15]  The Guatemalan Historical Clarification Commission has emphasized the need for mental health solutions that highlight community development and human rights.

[16] Rios Montt's conviction was overturned by Constitutional court due to lobbying by the country's business elite,[18] issuing a retrial that was delayed when a judge recused herself.

[22] K'iche' documents, such as the Título Xecul, detail his immense wealth, stating that he wore quetzal feathers, rare gems, and abundant jewelry.

[23] During the rule of General Efrain Rios Montt, Menchú protested the government's counterinsurgency programs with her family, claiming that they were the result of cultural and socioeconomic tensions.

[24] Luis Enrique Sam Colop is a K'iche'an writer who is most known for his accomplishment in translating the Popol Vuh from K'iche' into modern Spanish while bringing back the original poetry element.

[29][30] One of the most significant surviving Mesoamerican literary documents and primary sources of knowledge about Maya societal traditions, beliefs and mythology is a product of the 16th-century Kʼicheʼ people.

This document, known as the Popol Vuh ("Pop wuj" in proper Kʼiche – "the book of events") and originally written around the 1550s, contains a compilation of mythological and ethno-historical narratives known to these people at that time.

This sacred narrative includes their creation myth, relating how the world and humans were created by the gods, the story of the divine brothers, and the history of the Kʼicheʼ from their migration into their homeland up to the Spanish conquest.

[31] ′The Popol Vuh, from its creation to present day, has developed as an important symbol of Indigenous culture for both present-day Guatemalans and people of Mayan descent.

This sacred text has been used in religious and spiritual ceremonies, university studies, political movements and protests, and historical research into the lives of the Mayans and, more specifically, the Kʼicheʼ people.

The Popol Vuh has been used by people of Mayan descent in present-day Guatemala to defend their traditional lands and political rights in order to preserve their Indigenous culture.

To this day, the Popol Vuh continues to be analyzed and studied to better understand the spiritual beliefs and practices of the Maya, and how these have shaped present-day cultures.