Celaya (;

Otomi The Otomi (; ) are an Indigenous people of Mexico inhabiting the central Mexican Plateau (Altiplano) region. The Otomi are an Indigenous people of the Americas who inhabit a discontinuous territory in central Mexico. They are linguistically rel ...

: ) is a city and its surrounding

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

in the state of

Guanajuato Guanajuato, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Guanajuato, is one of the 32 states that make up the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Guanajuato, 46 municipalities and its cap ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, located in the southeast quadrant of the state. It is the third most populous city in the state, with a 2005 census population of 310,413. The municipality for which the city serves as municipal seat, had a population of 415,869. The city is located in the geographic center of the municipality, which has an areal extent of and includes many smaller outlying communities, the largest of which are San Miguel Octopan,

Rincón de Tamayo Rincón de Tamayo is a community in the municipality of Celaya, Guanajuato in Mexico. It maintains a relevance with regard to other communities in the municipality of Celaya. Singer Joan Sebastian José Manuel Figueroa Sr. (April 8, 1951 – July ...

and San Juan de la Vega. There are many smaller towns around Celaya including Rincón de Tamayo, Tarimoro, Villagrán, La Moncada, Panales Jamaica (Cañones), Panales Galera, La Calera, La Estancia, La Noria, Los Fierros, El Acebuche,

Cacalote Tarimoro is the municipal seat of the municipality of Tarimoro in the Mexican state of Guanajuato. Tarimoro is known for its peanuts and bricks. Every September, they celebrate the saint of the city, a custom in Mexico, San Miguel. They have g ...

, and Charco Largo. It is also not far away from Cortazar,

Salamanca Salamanca () is a Municipality of Spain, municipality and city in Spain, capital of the Province of Salamanca, province of the same name, located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is located in the Campo Charro comarca, in the ...

, Salvatierra,

Apaseo el Grande Apaseo el Grande is a city and Municipalities of Guanajuato, municipality located in Guanajuato, Mexico. The municipality covers 415.26 square kilometres (160 sq mi). It is bordered on the north by Comonfort and San Miguel de Allende, o ...

Querétaro City Querétaro, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Querétaro, is one of the Political divisions of Mexico, 32 federal entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Querétaro, 18 municipalities. Its capital city is Querétaro Cit ...

and among others. The city was founded in 1570 as ''Villa de la Purisíma Concepción de Zalaya''. The word Zalaya is of

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...

origin and means "Flat Land".

History

Celaya was a frontier region between the

Purépecha The Purépecha ( ) are a group of Indigenous people centered in the northwestern region of Michoacán, Mexico, mainly in the area of the cities of Cherán and Pátzcuaro. They are also known by the derogatory term " Tarascan", an exonym, app ...

and the

Chichimecas Chichimeca () is the name that the Nahua peoples of Mexico generically applied to nomadic and semi-nomadic peoples who were established in present-day Bajío region of Mexico. Chichimeca carried the same meaning as the Roman term "barbarian" tha ...

. General

Álvaro Obregón Álvaro Obregón Salido (; 19 February 1880 – 17 July 1928) was a Mexican general, inventor and politician who served as the 46th President of Mexico from 1920 to 1924. Obregón was re-elected to the presidency in 1928 but was assassinated b ...

defeated

Pancho Villa Francisco "Pancho" Villa ( , , ; born José Doroteo Arango Arámbula; 5 June 1878 – 20 July 1923) was a Mexican revolutionary and prominent figure in the Mexican Revolution. He was a key figure in the revolutionary movement that forced ...

in the

Battle of Celaya The Battle of Celaya, 6–15 April 1915, was part of a series of military engagements in the Bajío during the Mexican Revolution between the winners, who had allied against the regime of Gen. Victoriano Huerta (February 1913-July 1914) and the ...

in 1915, as referred by Martínez Celaya was also the Guanajuato state capital for a short period. An explosion in a gunpowder and fireworks warehouse in September, 1999, killed over 60 people and injured over 300 people. On 23 May 2022, eleven people were murdered in a

massacre A massacre is an event of killing people who are not engaged in hostilities or are defenseless. It is generally used to describe a targeted killing of civilians Glossary of French words and expressions in English#En masse, en masse by an armed ...

linked to the

Mexican drug war The Mexican drug war is an List of ongoing armed conflicts, ongoing Asymmetric warfare, asymmetric armed conflict between the Federal government of Mexico, Mexican government and various Drug cartel#Mexico, drug trafficking syndicates. When the ...

Geography

Climate

Celaya has a

semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of se ...

(Köppen climate classification BSh).

Education

*Centro Pedagogico de Celaya *Colegio Arturo Rosenblueth *Colegio Marista * Colegio Nuevo Continente Bajío Celaya Campus *Complejo Educativo Ignacio Allende *Colegio Mexico *Escuela Bilingue Guilford *Instituto Andersen *Instituto Bilingue Oxford *Instituto Británico de Celaya (BIC) *Instituto Educativo Rosa G. de Carmona *Instituto Sir Winston Churchill *Instituto Tecnologico de Celaya *Instituto Tecnologico de Roque * Instituto Universitario del Centro de México (UCEM) *Universidad de Celaya *

Universidad de Guanajuato The Universidad de Guanajuato (in English language, English, the University of Guanajuato) is a university based in the Mexican state of Guanajuato, made up of about 47,108 students in programs ranging from high school level to the doctorate l ...

*Universidad de Itesba *Universidad Lasallista Benavente *Universidad Latina de Mexico *Westminster Royal College

Attractions

Ball of Water

The Ball of Water reservoir has been a city icon since 1908; it continues to supply water to portions of downtown. The tank was manufactured in Germany and assembled on site, and is unique in being assembled using rivets rather than welds. It is believed to be the only one of its kind with a spherical shape (it is rumored that there was another similar water ball in

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

that was destroyed during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

). Traditionally, locals tell visitors that it is filled with

cajeta ''Dulce de leche'' (), caramelized milk, milk candy, or milk jam is a confection commonly consumed after slowly heating sugar and milk over several hours. The substance takes on a spreadable, sauce-like consistency and derives its rich flavour ...

, taking them to visit the "Bola del Agua" on Sundays, the traditional day for visiting the Independencia Lane. A plaque at the base of the water tower features the legend (in Spanish): The work was carried out under the command of German Enrique Schöndube, although it is known that payment for the construction took ten years due to the start of the

Mexican Revolution The Mexican Revolution () was an extended sequence of armed regional conflicts in Mexico from 20 November 1910 to 1 December 1920. It has been called "the defining event of modern Mexican history". It saw the destruction of the Federal Army, its ...

, so it was paid once the new government established. During the Mexican Revolution, Villa's officers thought the hydraulic tower had such a large amount of water that destroying it would drown the population of Celaya. One of Villa's generals ordered his artillery to destroy it. Captain Gustavo Duron, in charge of a 75mm battery, followed the orders but shot around the tower, avoiding it and protecting the monument, as mentioned by local historian Herminio Martínez. The construction resulted in the neglect of the people handing out water at home from the mayor's office called water carriers. Commercial advertising on its surface was allowed for several years to cover the costs of the reservoir, ending on September 8, 1980, when, in celebration of upcoming 410th Anniversary of the Foundation of Celaya, the mayor in charge decreed that the Ball of Water would be a symbol that would represent the city, and the placement of advertisements was banned.

Cuisine

Celaya is also known for the artisanal production of

, a type of milk candy.

Transportation

The Celaya Airport had (as of January 22, 2007) commercial flights to

Santiago de Querétaro Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Region, ...

and connections from there to other destinations; these services were dropped in 2008. Celaya lies along the El Paso Spur of the

Pan-American Highway The Pan-American Highway is a vast network of roads that stretches about 30,000 kilometers (about 19,000 miles) from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, in the northernmost part of North America to Ushuaia, Argentina, at the southern tip of South America. I ...

which is known locally as

Mexican Federal Highway 45 Federal Highway 45 (''La Carretera Federal 45'') (Fed. 45) is the toll-free (libre) part of the federal highways corridors (los corredores carreteros federales), and connects Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua through the Chihuahuan Desert to Pan ...

Notable people

* Marta Sahagún de Fox (b. April 10, 1953), former Mexican First Lady and wife of President Vicente Fox, lived in Celaya and unsuccessfully ran for mayor * Guillermo Martínez (b. 15 March 1995), Footballer * Miguel Martínez (b. September 29, 1921), Musician, composer and songwriter. Considered the father of the modern mariachi trumpet *

Francisco Eduardo Tresguerras Francisco Eduardo Tresguerras (October 13, 1759, Celaya, Guanajuato – August 3, 1833, Celaya) was a prominent Mexican architect and a painter. He was active during the colonial period and early independence. Biography Believing he had a reli ...

(b. October 13, 1759, d. August 3, 1833), Architect and painter. Designed the El Carmen church in Celaya * Joshua Ilika Brenner (b. September 14, 1976) Olympic swimmer * Liliana Ibáñez (b. January 30, 1991), Olympic swimmer *

Raúl Velasco Raúl Velasco Ramírez (April 24, 1933 – November 26, 2006) was a Mexican Television presenter, host/Television producer, producer of the TV show ''Siempre en Domingo (TV series), Siempre en Domingo'' (''Always on Sunday'') which is his hallma ...

(b. April 24, 1933, d. November 26, 2006) Entertainer and TV Producer. Was the host of the TV program ''Siempre en Domingo''. * Octavio Ocampo (b. February 28, 1943) Painter known for his "metamorphosis" style. *

Mauricio Ochmann Mauricio Ochmann (born November 16, 1977) is an American and Mexican actor best known for his roles in telenovelas, such as ''Amarte Asi'', where he starred as Ignacio "Nacho" Reyes. He also appeared in Kevin Costner's film ''Message in a Bottle ...

(b. November 16, 1977), Actor * Ever Guzmán (b. 15 March 1988), Footballer *

José Juan Vázquez José Juan Vázquez Gómez (; born 14 March 1988), also known as Gallito, is a former Mexican professional Association football, footballer who last played as a Midfielder#Defensive midfielder, defensive midfielder for Ecuadorian club S.D. Auc ...

(b. 14 March 1988), Footballer * David Roberto Bárcena Ríos (26 December 1941 – 22 February 2017) was a Mexican equestrian who competed at five Olympic Games, winning a bronze medial in the Team Event at his fifth Olympics

Sister cities

* Carrboro,

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

* Chapel Hill,

* Guernica, Spain * Oaxaca, Mexico * Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Mexico

References

Sources

Link to tables of population data from Census of 2005
INEGI: Instituto Nacional de Estadística, Geografía e Informática
Guanajuato
Enciclopedia de los Municipios de México

External links

* *
PODCelaya.com
Business Virtual Directory
Diócesis de Celaya

Domingo Negro Explosion
{{Authority control Municipalities of Guanajuato Otomi settlements Populated places established in 1570 Populated places in Guanajuato