Documents for "Mexican Political Geography":

• Acapulco city (1990 pop. 515,374), Guerrero state, S Mexico. A fashionable resort since the 1920s, it is known for its lavish hotels, deep-sea fishing, and skin diving. Its natural harbor, surrounded by...

• Aguascalientes [Span.,= "hot waters" ], state (1990 pop. 719,659), 2,007 sq mi (5,200 sq km), central Mexico, on the Anáhuac plateau. Aguascalientes is the capital. Cattle are raised on the wide plains and in the foothills; alfalfa, corn, wheat, chilies, and peaches are grown; and wine and brandy are produced. There is some mining in the...

• Aguascalientes city (1990 pop. 455,234), capital of Aguascalientes state, central Mexico. The city is a pleasant health resort, noted for its mineral waters and vineyards. Its industries include railroad repair...

• Ahome city, Sinaloa state, W Mexico, on the Pacific Ocean. Ahome lies along the Inter-American Highway and is linked by rail with Mexico City. Sugarcane, grains, and cotton are grown in the region,...

• Amecameca town (1990 pop. 25,374), Mexico state, S central Mexico, at the foot of the Popocatépetl and Ixtacíhuatl volcanoes. The sanctuary of El Sacro Monte, the most venerated spot in Mexico after the...

• Ayutla town (1990 pop. 6,214), Guerrero state, S Mexico. Its full name is Ayutla de los Libres [Ayutla of the free]. It is the commercial center for an agricultural, cattle-raising, and lumbering area...

• Azcapotzalco city (1990 pop. 473,476), S Mexico, in the Federal District. An important rail center, with railroad yards, it is the terminus of mail and cargo traffic. Azcapotzalco's cattle industry supplies...

• Baja California state (1990 pop. 1,660,855), 27,628 sq mi (71,576 sq km), NW Mexico, on the Baja California peninsula. Mexicali is the capital. A rapidly growing state, Baja California is a center of development...

• Baja California or Lower California, peninsula, c.760 mi (1,220 km) long and from 30 to 150 mi (48-241 km) wide, NW Mexico, separating the Gulf of California from the Pacific Ocean. The peninsula is divided at lat. 28° N into the...

• Baja California Sur state (1990 pop. 317,764), 27,571 sq mi (71,428 sq km), NW Mexico, on the Baja California peninsula. La Paz is the capital. The area is lightly populated and has little arable land. There is some cotton grown commercially and there is significant salt mining in the desert region in the northern portion...

• Córdoba kôr´dōvä , city (1990 pop. 130,695), Veracruz state, E central Mexico. It is the commercial and processing center of a fertile coffee, sugarcane, and tropical fruit region. Sugar milling is the chief...

• California, Lower see Baja California , peninsula.

• Campeche state (1990 pop. 535,185), 21,924 sq mi (56,798 sq km), SE Mexico, on the Gulf of Campeche. The city of Campeche is the capital. Comprising most of the western half of the Yucatán peninsula, much of the state lies in hot, humid, and unhealthy lowlands. Rainfall in the southwestern sector is heavy. The state had extensive forests, and logwood ( campeche in Spanish) has been one of the chief exports. Agriculture and stock raising are important in the more arid northeastern sector. Using Campeche as a base, the Spanish explorer Francisco de Montejo...

• Campeche city (1990 pop. 150,518), capital of Campeche state, SE Mexico, on the Yucatán peninsula. It is fortified and surrounded by 18th-century walls. Although it remains an export center for the...

• Cancún city (1990 pop. 167,730), Quintana Roo state, SE Mexico. An international resort, Cancún is known for its beaches, agreeable climate, and luxurious hotels and facilities. Built in the early 1970s...

• Celaya city (1990 pop. 214,856), Guanajuato state, W central Mexico. In a region watered by the Lerma irrigation works, Celaya is the center of a prosperous corn, cereal, and bean growing area. Cattle...

• Chetumal city (1990 pop. 94,158), capital of Quintana Roo State, E. Mexico. Chetumal is a major import center and free port as well as an export point for the hardwoods of the region, including cedar and...

• Chiapas state (1990 pop. 3,210,496), 28,732 sq mi (74,416 sq km), SE Mexico, on the Pacific Ocean between Guatemala and the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. Tuxtla Gutiérrez is the capital. Chiapas is crossed by mountain ranges rising from the isthmus and extending southeast into Guatemala. They are separated by low, subtropical valleys. Paralleling the coastal plain...

• Chihuahua state (1990 pop. 2,441,873), 94,831 sq mi (245,612 sq km), N Mexico, on the border of N.Mex. and Texas. The city of Chihuahua is the capital. Largest of the Mexican states, Chihuahua is divided into two regions—the mountains of the Sierra Madre Occidental to the west, and the vast, cactus-and-greasewood desert basins,...

• Chihuahua city (1990 pop. 516,153), capital of Chihuahua state, N Mexico. It lies in a valley almost encircled by hills. Chihuahua is the commercial and processing center of a vast central area. Agriculture,...

• Chilpancingo or Chilpancingo de los Bravos , city (1990 pop. 97,165), capital of Guerrero state, S Mexico. Chilpancingo serves as the regional center of agricultural industry, producing primarily corn and bananas. Its full name, Chilpancingo...

• Cholula or Cholula de Rivadabia , city (1990 pop. 53,673), Puebla state, E central Mexico. The site of the famous Teocali de Cholula, a pre-Columbian pyramid of great antiquity, the city was an old Toltec center and, when the Spanish came, was an Aztec sacred city devoted to the worship of Quetzalcoatl. Suspecting native insurrection, Hernán Cortés destroyed the city in 1519; from 5,000 to 10,000 people were killed in the massacre of Cholula. Cortés then vowed to build a church for each of the...

• Ciudad Guzmán city (1990 pop. 72,619), Jalisco state, SW Mexico. It is a marketing and processing center, especially for hogs, with some minor industries. The city is the starting point for ascents of the...

• Ciudad Juárez see Juárez , Mexico.

• Ciudad Porfirio Díaz Mexico: see Piedras Negras.

• Ciudad Victoria city (1990 pop. 194,996), capital of Tamaulipas state, NE Mexico, on the San Marcos River and at the foot of the Sierra Madre Oriental. The city, founded in 1750, lies on the Inter-American...

• Coahuila state (1990 pop. 1,972,340), 58,067 sq mi (150,394 sq km), N Mexico, on the northward bulge of the Rio Grande, S of Texas. Saltillo is the capital. In the eastern part of the state, where peaks of the Sierra Madre Oriental rise, are quantities of silver, copper, lead, iron, and zinc. Coahuila is an important coal-producing...

• Coatzacoalcos city (1990 pop. 198,817), Veracruz state, E central Mexico, at the mouth of the Coatzacoalcos River. It is a port on the Gulf of Campeche, as well as the northern terminus of rail traffic across...

• Colima state (1990 pop. 428,510), 2,010 sq mi (5,206 sq km), SW Mexico, on the Pacific Ocean. The capital is Colima ; the port is Manzanillo. The second smallest in population and one of the smallest in area of the Mexican states, Colima is wedged between Jalisco, which nearly surrounds it, and Michoacán. It includes the islands of...

• Colima city (1990 pop. 106,967), capital of Colima state, SW Mexico. It is a marketing and processing center for the surrounding agricultural region. The city was founded in 1523 by the Spanish explorer Gonzalo...

• Coyoacán see Mexico , city.

• Cuautla city (1990 pop. 110,242), Morelos state, S Mexico, in the Cuautla River valley. It is a highway junction and the heart of a sugarcane and rice district; in the late 20th cent. it experienced...

• Cuernavaca city (1990 pop. 279,187), capital of Morelos state, S Mexico, in the Cuernavaca Valley. Increasingly a suburb of Mexico City (to the north), Cuernavaca has flour mills and beverage, textile, and...

• Durango state (1990 pop. 1,349,378), 47,691 sq mi (123,520 sq km), N central Mexico. The city of Durango is the capital. The western half of the state is dominated by the Sierra Madre Occidental. These mountains contain deposits of many different minerals, and the mines extend north into the state of...

• Durango dooräng´gō or Victoria de Durango , city (1990 pop. 348,036), capital of Durango state, N central Mexico, along the highway linking Mexico City with El Paso, Tex. Minerals are the chief product, but the city is also an agricultural,...

• Ecatepec de Morelos city (1990 pop. 1,218,135), Mexico state, S central Mexico. It is an industrial center. Ecatepec was the site of an Aztec kingdom established in the 12th cent. The Mexican revolutionary hero Morelos...

• Ensenada city (1990 pop. 259,979), Baja California state, NW Mexico. Developed in the 19th cent., Ensenada is the oldest deep-sea port in Baja California and is one of the most important ports in Mexico...

• Fresnillo city (1990 pop. 75,118), Zacatecas state, N central Mexico. The city, a rail and highway junction, is the center of a rich mining area known especially for silver. It has a mining school...

• Gómez Palacio see Torreón.

• Guadalajara city (1990 pop. 1,650,042), capital of Jalisco state, SW Mexico, second largest city of Mexico. The metropolitan area includes close to 3 million people. Guadalajara is a beautiful, spacious city...

• Guadalupe city (1990 pop. 535,332), Nuevo León state, NE Mexico, on the Santa Catalina River. Its economy is based on agriculture, especially corn, and livestock raising.

• Guanajuato state (1990 pop. 3,982,593), 11,805 sq mi (30,575 sq km), W central Mexico, on the central plateau. The city of Guanajuato is the capital. The state's high average elevation (6,000 ft/1,829 m) provides a moderately cool, healthful climate. Guanajuato is crossed in the north by transverse ranges of the Sierra Madre...

• Guanajuato city (1990 pop. 73,108), capital of Guanajuato state, W central Mexico. The city, with an altitude of c.6,600 ft (2,000 m), is situated in the Cañada de Marfil [ivory ravine], a precipitous ravine...

• Guasave city (1990 pop. 49,338), Sinaloa state, W Mexico, on the Sinaloa River. The growing of cotton and corn and the raising of livestock are the chief occupations. The city was established in 1595 as a...

• Guaymas city (1990 pop. 87,484), Sonora state, NW Mexico, on the bay of Guaymas. A port on the Gulf of California, it is also the outlet for Hermosillo. Guaymas stands on a scenic inlet girt by desert...

• Guerrero state (1990 pop. 2,620,637), 24,887 sq mi (64,457 sq km), S Mexico, on the Pacific Ocean. The capital is Chilpancingo. Dominated by the Sierra Madre del Sur, which reaches 12,149 ft (3,703 m) in the Pico de Teotepec, Guerrero is extremely mountainous except for a narrow coastal strip, which has a harbor at Acapulco. The state's major river is the Río de las Balsas. The climate of the coast and the deep valleys is hot and rainy, but the highlands are temperate and drier. Tourism, centered at Acapulco, is an...

• Gustavo A. Madero city (1990 pop. 1,268,068), Federal District, S central Mexico. Formerly called Guadalupe Hidalgo, it was renamed in 1931. It is the site of the Our Lady of Guadalupe shrine and is a major Roman...

• Guzmán Mexico: see Ciudad Guzmán.

• Hermosillo city (1990 pop. 406,417), capital of Sonora state, NW Mexico, at the entrance to the gorge of the Sonora River. Hermosillo is a transportation, manufacturing, and agricultural center in an...

• Hidalgo state (1990 pop. 1,888,366), 8,058 sq mi (20,870 sq km), central Mexico. Pachuca de Soto is the capital. Crossed by the Sierra Madre Oriental, the state is extremely mountainous; in the southern and western areas, however, are plains and fertile valleys lying within Mexico's central...

• Hidalgo del Parral or Parral, city (1990 pop. 88,197), Chihuahua state, N Mexico, on the Parral River. The city, a rail and highway junction, is one of Mexico's large mining centers, especially for silver, which has been mined...

• Iguala or Iguala de la Independencia , city (1990 pop. 83,412), Guerrero state, S Mexico, on the Cocula River. It is the communications, distribution, and processing center of the surrounding mining and agricultural region. There are...

• Irapuato city (1990 pop. 265,042), Guanajuato state, W central Mexico, on the Irapuato River. It is the commercial and communications center of the surrounding mining and agricultural (cereals and cattle)...

• Ixtacalco see Iztacalco , Mexico.

• Ixtapa resort town, Guerrero, SW Mexico, on the Pacific. Its broad bay was largely untouched until the late 1960s. In 1972 the Mexican government began developing a planned, strictly zoned deluxe resort...

• Ixtapalapa see Iztapalapa , Mexico.

• Iztacalco or Ixtacalco , city (1990 pop. 448,322), Federal District, S central Mexico. It is an industrial center adjacent to Mexico City. Several historic landmarks have been preserved.

• Iztapalapa or Ixtapalapa , city (1990 pop. 1,490,499), Federal District, S central Mexico. It is a commercial and industrial center. Iztapalapa was founded on the site of an important pre-Colombian city.

• Jalapa or Jalapa Enriquez: see Xalapa , Mexico.

• Jalisco state (1990 pop. 5,302,689), 31,152 sq mi (80,684 sq km), W Mexico, bounded on the west by the Pacific. Guadalajara is the capital. Jalisco is dominated by the southern end of the Sierra Madre Occidental and the western extremity of the chain of volcanic mountains extending across central Mexico. The hot,...

• Juárez city (1990 pop. 789,522) Chihuahua state, N Mexico, on the Rio Grande opposite El Paso , Tex. Connected with the United States by three international bridges, it is a shipping point and highway and rail terminus. It is also the commercial and processing center for the surrounding...

• Juchitán or Juchitán de Zaragoza , town (1990 pop. 53,666), Oaxaca state, S Mexico. Located on the Juchitán River in a vast expanse of flat, fertile plain only slightly above sea level, the old...

• La Paz lä päs , city (1990 pop. 137,641), capital and largest city of Baja California Sur state, W Mexico. A tourist spot and transportation hub for the southern Baja peninsula, La Paz was first settled in 1811...

• León city (1990 pop. 758,270), Guanajuato state, central Mexico. It is located in a fertile river valley c.5,600 ft (1,700 m) high, but with a mild, temperate climate. Frequent floods, which in 1888...

• Lerdo or Ciudad Lerdo: see Torreón.

• Los Mochis city (1990 pop. 162,659), Sinaloa state, W Mexico. Los Mochis is connected to Mexico City by highway and to the port of Topolobampo by road and rail. It also has an airport. It is the commercial...

• Lower California see Baja California.

• Mérida city (1990 pop. 523,422), capital of Yucatán state, SE Mexico. It is the chief commercial, communications, and cultural center of the Yucatán peninsula. Founded (1542) by Francisco de Montejo , the younger, on the site of a ruined Mayan city, Mérida has many fine examples of Spanish colonial architecture, notably the 16th-century cathedral. Rooftop windmills, characteristic of this...

• Manzanillo city (1990 pop. 67,697), Colima state, SW Mexico. One of Mexico's chief Pacific ports, Manzanillo has a fine harbor and modern rail and highway connections with Mexico City. It handles many imports...

• Matamoros city (1990 pop. 266,055), Tamaulipas state, NE Mexico, near the mouth of the Rio Grande, opposite Brownsville, Tex. Matamoros, linked by rail and highway with the United States, is an international...

• Mazatlán city (1990 pop. 262,705), Sinaloa state, W Mexico, on the Pacific coast. One of the largest commercial and industrial centers of W Mexico, Mazatlán is one of Mexico's major Pacific seaports. It is...

• Mexicali city (1990 pop. 438,377), capital of Baja California state, NW Mexico, across the border from Calexico, Calif. Once noted chiefly as the center of a cotton- and cereal-raising area, it has...

• Mexico Span. México or Méjico , officially United Mexican States, republic (2005 est. pop. 106,203,000), 753,665 sq mi (1,952,500 sq km), S North America. It borders on the United States in the north, on the Gulf of Mexico...

• Mexico Span. México or Méjico, state (1990 pop. 9,815,795), 8,286 sq mi (21,461 sq km), S central Mexico. Toluca is the capital. The northern section of the state, containing most of the Valley of Mexico (part of the Anáhuac plateau), has broad, shallow lakes and is broken by low mountains. There are steeper...

• Mexico or Mexico City, Span. Ciudad de México ( Méjico ), city (1990 pop. 8,236,960; 1991 met. area est. 20,899,000), central Mexico, capital and largest city of Mexico.

• Michoacán state (1990 pop. 3,548,199), 23,202 sq mi (60,093 sq km), S Mexico. Morelia is the capital. Dominated by the mountains of the Sierra Madre Occidental and the volcanic chain of central Mexico, Michoacán extends from the Pacific Ocean northeastward into the central plateau...

• Monclova city (1990 pop. 177,792), central Coahuila state, Mexico. Situated on the northern end of the Sierra Madre Oriental, it is a regional commercial and industrial center. Monclova's chief industry is...

• Monterrey city (1990 pop. 1,068,996), capital of Nuevo León state, NE Mexico, the third largest city of Mexico. Located c.150 mi (240 km) S of Laredo, Tex., in a valley surrounded by mountains, Monterrey is...

• Morelia city (1990 pop. 489,756), capital of Michoacán state, W Mexico. It is the commercial and processing center of an irrigated agricultural and cattle-raising area. Founded as Valladolid in 1541 by...

• Morelos state (1990 pop. 1,195,059), 1,917 sq mi (4,965 sq km), S Mexico. Cuernavaca is the capital. Morelos is separated from the Federal District and from Mexico state by the east-west volcanic chain crossing central Mexico. Morelos itself is mountainous, with many broad,...

• Naucalpan city (1990 pop. 772,483), Mexico state, S central Mexico, on the Hondo River. It is an industrial extension of Mexico City and is officially called Naucalpan de Juárez.

• Nayarit state (1990 pop. 824,643), 10,547 sq mi (27,317 sq km), W Mexico, on the Pacific Ocean. Tepic is the capital. Mostly wild and rugged, Nayarit is broken by western spurs of the Sierra Madre Occidental. In the northeast are broad, tropical plains watered by the Santiago River, a continuation...

• Netzahualcóyotl city (1990 pop. 1,255,456), Mexico state, S central Mexico. It is a one of Mexico City's largest and poorest suburban municipalities. The city is officially named Ciudad Netzahualcóyotl.

• Nuevo Laredo city (1990 pop. 218,413), Tamaulipas state, NE Mexico, across the Rio Grande from Laredo, Tex. Linked with the United States by automobile and railroad bridges, Nuevo Laredo is the northern...

• Nuevo León state (1990 pop. 3,098,736), 25,136 sq mi (65,102 sq km), N Mexico. Monterrey is the capital. The southern and western parts of the state are traversed by the Sierra Madre Oriental, but some of the extreme western portions lie within the vast, semiarid basin lands of N...

• Oaxaca state (1990 pop. 3,019,560), 36,375 sq mi (94,211 sq km), S Mexico, on the Pacific Ocean and its arm, the Gulf of Tehuantepec. Oaxaca is the capital. The northern part of the state is dominated by the Sierra de Oaxaca; there are deep tortuous valleys in the south and broad, open semiarid valleys and plateaus in the north. Except...

• Oaxaca city (1990 pop. 212,818), capital of Oaxaca state, S Mexico. The city is officially called Oaxaca de Juárez. Situated in a valley encircled by low mountains, Oaxaca is a commercial and tourist center with gardens and many examples of...

• Orizaba city (1990 pop. 114,216), Veracruz state, E central Mexico. It is the commercial center of a prosperous bean and sugar growing region. The development of water power has stimulated manufacturing...

• Pachuca de Soto city (1990 pop. 174,013), capital of Hidalgo state, central Mexico, at the head of a ravine surrounded by foothills of the Sierra Madre Oriental. Pachuca, one of Mexico's oldest and most famous...

• Papantla town (1990 pop. 46,075), Veracruz state, E central Mexico. It is the commercial center of an agricultural region producing vanilla. Orchards are also cultivated in the area. Papantla is known for...

• Parral see Hidalgo del Parral , Mexico.

• Parras formerly Parras de la Fuente , city (1990 pop. 26,160), Coahuila state, N Mexico. It is a road and rail junction located in a well-watered valley of a semiarid region. Parras, an agricultural center, has orchards and vineyards...

• Piedras Negras city (1990 pop. 96,178), Coahuila state, N Mexico, on the Rio Grande opposite Eagle Pass, Tex. Founded in 1849, the city grew as an international shipping point. Piedras Negras is a commercial and...

• Puebla state (1990 pop. 4,126,101), 13,126 sq mi (33,996 sq km), E central Mexico. The city of Puebla is the capital. The state is almost entirely mountainous, with large valleys between its ranges. N Puebla is dominated by the Sierra Madre Oriental, and a volcanic belt stretches across the central...

• Puebla city (1990 pop. 1,007,170), capital of Puebla state, E central Mexico. Its official name is Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza, in honor of Gen. Ignacio Zaragoza, who defeated the French forces there in...

• Puerto Vallarta city (1990 pop. 93,503), Jalisco state, W Mexico. Located on the expansive Bahía de Banderas [Bay of Flags], Puerto Vallarta has been used since the 16th cent. as a stopover point for ships making...

• Querétaro officially Santiago de Querétaro, city (1990 pop. 385,503) and capital of Querétaro de Arteaga state, central Mexico. It is a distribution center with industries producing machinery and farm implements; the city's cotton mills are among the most important in Mexico. Querétaro is also a...

• Querétaro de Arteaga state (1990 pop. 1,061,236), 4,432 sq mi (11,479 sq km), central Mexico. The city of Querétaro is the capital. With mountains in the north and valleys and plains in the south, the state raises a variety of agricultural products, especially grains. Extensive pasturelands make livestock...

• Quintana Roo state (1990 pop. 493,277), 19,630 sq mi (50,842 sq km), SE Mexico, on the Caribbean. Chetumal is the capital. Occupying most of the eastern part of the Yucatán peninsula, the state was, until recently, wild, sparsely settled, and populated almost entirely by the Maya. In recent years large areas have been cleared for farming and pasture, and the coast has...

• Salamanca city (1990 pop. 206,275), Guanajuato state, W central Mexico. Chiefly an oil center, it also serves as the commercial and distribution point for the surrounding agricultural region. The city lies...

• Saltillo city (1990 pop. 420,947), capital of Coahuila state, N Mexico. It is located in an alluvial valley almost surrounded by mountains. Saltillo is a commercial and industrial center with heavy and...

• San Luis Potosí state (1990 pop. 2,003,187), 24,417 sq mi (63,240 sq km), central Mexico. San Luis Potosí is the capital. Most of the state lies on the eastern tablelands of Mexico's central plateau. Except in the humid tropical Pánuco River valley in the extreme east, near the Gulf of Mexico, the...

• San Luis Potosí city (1990 pop. 489,238), capital of San Luis Potosí state, central Mexico. Situated on a plain almost entirely surrounded by low mountains, the city is a mining and agricultural distribution...

• San Nicolás de los Garzas city (1990 pop. 436,603), Nuevo León state, N Mexico, in the Santa Catarina valley. It is situated on a major highway in a predominantly poor rural area where oranges are grown.

• Santo Domingo Tehuantepec see Tehuantepec , Mexico.

• Sinaloa state (1990 pop. 2,204,054), 22,582 sq mi (58,487 sq km), W Mexico, on the Gulf of California and the Pacific Ocean. Culiacán is the capital. A long, narrow territory lying between the ocean and...

• Sonora state (1990 pop. 1,823,606), 70,484 sq mi (182,554 sq km), NW Mexico, on the Gulf of California, S of Arizona. Hermosillo is the capital. Sonora is mostly mountainous, with vast desert stretches; along the gulf are low, broad coastlands. Reclamation projects on the Yaqui, Sonora, Mayo, and other rivers have opened...

• Tabasco state (1990 pop. 1,501,744), 9,783 sq mi (25,338 sq km), E Mexico, on the Gulf of Campeche. Villahermosa is the capital. Tabasco is predominantly a tropical plain, once densely forested, that is broken by numerous rivers, swamps, and lagoons. The climate is sultry, and rainfall in some areas exceeds...

• Tajín see El Tajín.

• Tamaulipas state (1990 pop. 2,249,581), 30,734 sq mi (79,601 sq km), NE Mexico, on the Gulf of Mexico. Ciudad Victoria is the capital. The central and western parts of the state are in the mountains of the Sierra Madre Oriental. In the north and south are arable plains, particularly in the long panhandle beginning...

• Tampico city (1990 pop. 272,690), Tamaulipas state, E Mexico, on the Pánuco River, a few miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico. Rivaling Veracruz as Mexico's most important seaport, Tampico is used...

• Tapachula city (1990 pop. 138,858) Chiapas state, SE Mexico, at the foot of the Chiapas highlands and near the Guatemala border. It is the commercial center of a coffee-growing region and an important...

• Taxco town (1990 pop. 43,836), Guerrero state, S Mexico. Founded in 1529 as a silver-mining community, Taxco was also an important stop between Mexico City and Acapulco in Spanish colonial trade with...

• Tehuantepec officially Santo Domingo Tehuantepec , town (1990 pop. 33,445), Oaxaca state, S Mexico, on a wide bend of the Tehuantepec River not far from the Gulf of Tehuantepec, an arm of the Pacific. The town is on the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. The...

• Tepic city (1990 pop. 206,967), capital of Nayarit state, W Mexico, on the Tepic River. A commercial center on the coastal line of the Mexican National Railways and on a major highway, Tepic lies in a...

• Tijuana city (1990 pop. 698,752), Baja California state, NW Mexico, just south of the U.S. border. It is a gaudy border resort, noted for its racetracks and bullfights. An irrigated agricultural area...

• Tlalnepantla de Baz city (1990 pop. 702,270), Mexico state, S central Mexico, on the Tlalnepantla River. It is a communications and industrial center that owes its importance largely to its proximity to Mexico City...

• Tlaquepaque city (1990 pop. 328,031), Jalisco state, SW Mexico, in the Guadalajara valley. Its folklore and local artisanry, as well as its proximity to Guadalajara, make Tlaquepaque a popular tourist spot...

• Tlaxcala state (1990 pop. 761,277), 1,555 sq mi (4,027 sq km), E central Mexico. Tlaxcala is the capital. It is the smallest and one of the most densely populated Mexican states. The western part lies within Mexico's central plateau; the remainder, however, is extremely mountainous,...

• Tlaxcala city (1990 pop. 50,486), capital of Tlaxcala state, E central Mexico. It is the site of the oldest Christian church in the Americas, founded (1521) by the Spanish explorer Hernán Cortés...

• Toluca city (1990 pop. 327,865), capital of Mexico state, central Mexico. Located on the central plateau, Toluca (alt. c.8,760 ft/2,670 m) has a year-round cool climate. It was established as a...

• Torreón city (1990 pop. 439,436), Coahuila state, N Mexico, on the Nazas River. It is the metropolis of the Laguna District , where the land, extensively irrigated, is some of Mexico's finest. Cotton and wheat are the principal crops, and cattle raising is important. Torreón's industries include rubber manufacturing,...

• Tuxtla Gutiérrez or Tuxtla, city (1990 pop. 289,626), capital of Chiapas state, SE Mexico, in the fertile Grijalva valley and at the foot of the Chiapas highlands. Agriculture and cattle raising are the chief occupations, and there is trade in timber. Tuxtla Gutiérrez's...

• Uruapan city (1990 pop. 187,623), Michoacán state, W Mexico. An attractive city with gardens and parks, it is in a semitropical, mountainous agricultural region. The city, founded in 1540, is the center...

• Veracruz [Span.,=true cross], officially Veracruz Llave , state (1990 pop. 6,228,239), 27,759 sq mi (71,896 sq km), E central Mexico. The capital is Xalapa. Stretching c.430 mi (690 km) along the Gulf of Mexico and reaching from 30 to 100 mi (48-161 km) inland, Veracruz rises from a tropical coastal plain into the temperate valleys and highlands of...

• Veracruz city (1990 pop. 303,152), Veracruz state, E central Mexico, on the Gulf of Mexico. Rivaling Tampico as the country's main port, it is also the commercial and industrial center of an important oil region, as well as a major tourist resort with beautiful scenery, fine beaches, and excellent...

• Victoria Mexico see: Ciudad Victoria.

• Victoria de Durango see Durango , city, Mexico.

• Villahermosa city (1990 pop. 261,321), capital of Tabasco state, SE Mexico, on the Grijalva River. The city, which has good communications facilities, is the commercial and distribution center for the...

• Xalapa or Xalapa Enriquez , city (1990 pop. 279,451), capital of Veracruz state, E central Mexico, on the slopes of the Sierra Madre Oriental. It is located in a rich agricultural region of fertile valleys. Its cool climate,...

• Xochimilco town (1990 pop. 271,151), Federal District, S central Mexico, suburb of Mexico City. Mainly a commercial and tourist center, it is famous for its canals lined with poplars and flowers ( Xochimilco is a Native American word meaning "plantation of flowers" ). In pre-Hispanic times the Xochimilcas built soil-covered rafts ( chinampas ) in Lake Xochimilco on which they grew vegetables and flowers to be shipped to Mexico City on the canals. Eventually the rafts became islands rooted to the lake bottom. Boating on the canals is...

• Yucatán peninsula, c.70,000 sq mi (181,300 sq km), mostly in SE Mexico, separating the Caribbean Sea from the Gulf of Mexico. It comprises the states of Yucatán , Campeche , and Quintana Roo , Mexico;...

• Yucatán state (1990 pop. 1,362,940), 14,868 sq mi (38,508 sq km), SE Mexico, occupying most of the northern part of the Yucatán peninsula. It lies between Campeche and Quintana Roo. The principal industry is tourism and the cultivation and preparation of henequen—mostly exported to the United States. Citrus production has gained in importance in recent years, and textile...

• Zacatecas state (1990 pop. 1,276,329), 28,125 sq mi (72,844 sq km), N central Mexico. Zacatecas is the capital. Lying on the central plateau, Zacatecas is a state of semiarid plains and mountains. The Sierra Madre Occidental dominates the western half, and a transverse spur (often over 10,000...

• Zacatecas city (1990 pop. 100,051), capital of Zacatecas state, N central Mexico. With an altitude of more than 8,000 ft (2,438 m), it is situated in a deep ravine surrounded by arid hills. The climate is temperate. The city is characterized by colonial...

• Zapopan city (1990 pop. 668,323), Jalisco state, SW Mexico; est. 1541. In close proximity to Guadalajara, Zapopan is a growing city. It is a commercial center for the surrounding region. The Basilica of...