Hacienda An ''hacienda'' ( or ; or ) is an estate (or ''finca''), similar to a Roman ''latifundium'', in Spain and the former Spanish Empire. With origins in Andalusia, ''haciendas'' were variously plantations (perhaps including animals or orchards), ...

Chichí de los Lagos is located in the

Homún Municipality Homún Municipality (, in the Yucatec Maya language: “Five unripened”) is a municipality in the Mexican state of Yucatán containing (192.89 km2) of land and located roughly 50 km southeast of the city of Mérida. History Afte ...

in the state of Yucatán in southeastern Mexico. It is one of the properties that arose during the nineteenth century

henequen Henequen (''Agave fourcroydes'') is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, native to southern Mexico and Guatemala. It is reportedly naturalized in Italy, the Canary Islands, Costa Rica, Cuba, Hispaniola, the Cayman Islands and ...

boom.

Toponymy

The name (Chichí de los Lagos) is a combination of Maya and Spanish terms. "Chichi" is a word from the Mayan language meaning grandmother and "lagos" is a Spanish word meaning lakes. The name refers to the Yalahau Lagoon and two other small bodies of water located near the hacienda.

How to get there

Take highway 180 heading east out of Mérida toward Valladolid. At approximately 36 km turn south toward Tahmek on Calle 20. Take Calle 20 through Hocaba and continue south into Homún. Near the center of Homún, turn east onto Calle 19. Proceed on Calle 19 to Calle 8 and turn south again. Within 7 km is Hacienda Chichí de los Lagos.

History

The hacienda was built in 1765 by the orders of the Spanish governor of Yucatán. During the

boom, the property was owned by Enrique and Elías Espinosa who issued hacienda tokens to their workers.

Architecture

There are two main buildings remaining on the site. One is the foreman's house which still has the fireplace chimney standing and a windmill, which pumped water to irrigate the gardens. The main house is of the colonial style and has stone arches, balconies and a stone portico around the main entrance. There is a mural which is preserved in the chapel. A traditional Mayan thatched house was built about 50 meters from the wall to install artisans' booths. The estate is being renovated to serve as a tourist destination.

Demographics

All of the henequen plantations ceased to exist as autonomous communities with the agrarian land reform implemented by President Lazaro Cardenas in 1937. His decree turned the haciendas into collective '' ejidos'', leaving only 150 hectares to the former landowners for use as private property. Figures before 1937 indicate populations living on the farm. After 1937, figures indicate those living in the community, as the remaining Hacienda Chichí de los Lagos houses only the owner's immediate family. According to the 2005 census conducted by the

INEGI The National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI by its name in es, Instituto Nacional de Estadística, Geografía e Informática) is an autonomous agency of the Mexican Government dedicated to coordinate the National System of Stat ...

, the population of the city was 0 inhabitants.

References

Bibliography

* Bracamonte, P and Solís, R., ''Los espacios de autonomía maya'', Ed. UADY, Mérida, 1997. * Gobierno del Estado de Yucatán, "Los municipios de Yucatán", 1988. * Kurjack, Edward y Silvia Garza, ''Atlas arqueológico del Estado de Yucatán'', Ed. INAH, 1980. * Patch, Robert, ''La formación de las estancias y haciendas en Yucatán durante la colonia'', Ed. UADY, 1976. * Peón Ancona, J. F., "Las antiguas haciendas de Yucatán", en ''Diario de Yucatán'', Mérida, 1971.

Photo gallery

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chichi de los Lagos Populated places in Yucatán Haciendas of Yucatán Agave production