Kanasín (In the

Yucatec Maya language Yucatec Maya ( ; referred to by its speakers as or ) is a Mayan languages, Mayan language spoken in the Yucatán Peninsula, including part of northern Belize. There is also a significant diasporic community of Yucatec Maya speakers in San Fra ...

: “tense or strongly tightened”) is a city in the Mexican state of

Yucatán Yucatán, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Yucatán, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, constitute the 32 federal entities of Mexico. It comprises 106 separate municipalities, and its capital city is Mérida. ...

and the municipal seat of the municipality of the same name. It is located in the northwestern region of the state, forming part of the Mérida metropolitan area. According to the 2020 census carried out by the

National Institute of Statistics and Geography The National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI from its former name in ) is an autonomous agency of the Mexican Government dedicated to coordinate the National System of Statistical and Geographical Information of the country. It w ...

(INEGI), it had a population of 139,753, making it the second largest Yucatecan city after Mérida, the 8th most populous in southeastern Mexico and the 101st most populous in the country. In

pre-Columbian In the history of the Americas, the pre-Columbian era, also known as the pre-contact era, or as the pre-Cabraline era specifically in Brazil, spans from the initial peopling of the Americas in the Upper Paleolithic to the onset of European col ...

times, the space that the city currently occupies was located in the ancient Mayan chiefdom of Chakan. Kanasín was established around the mid-16th century under the encomienda tributary system following the

Spanish conquest of Yucatán The Spanish conquest of Yucatán was the campaign undertaken by the Spanish Empire, Spanish ''conquistadores'' against the Mesoamerican chronology, Late Postclassic Maya civilization, Maya states and polities in the Yucatán Peninsula, a vast ...

. The name of the city derives precisely from a Mayan language term used to name a plant with reddish flowers that grows in the area. In 2007, it officially received city status. At the end of 2021, it hosted the First Ibero-American Meeting of Poetry. Today, it is a significant development pole as an industrial corridor for the state, together with the nearby city of

Umán Umán is a city in the Mexican state of Yucatán and the municipal seat of the municipality of the same name. Together with Kanasín, it is part of the Mérida metropolitan area. According to the 2020 census, it had a population of 56,409 inhabi ...

, which is also a suburb of Mérida.

History

It is unknown which chieftainship the area was under prior to the arrival of the Spanish. After the

conquest Conquest involves the annexation or control of another entity's territory through war or Coercion (international relations), coercion. Historically, conquests occurred frequently in the international system, and there were limited normative or ...

the area became part of the

encomienda The ''encomienda'' () was a Spanish Labour (human activity), labour system that rewarded Conquistador, conquerors with the labour of conquered non-Christian peoples. In theory, the conquerors provided the labourers with benefits, including mil ...

system. One of the first encomenderos was Francisco Sosa, with 209 Indians in his charge. Later it passed to Josefa Díaz Bolio, who had care of 211 Indians and then to reverend Sister María Josefa, with 155 Indians. Yucatán declared its independence from the Spanish Crown in 1821 and in 1825, Kanasín was established as head of its own municipality.

Governance

Kanasín is the municipal seat of its eponymous municipality. Its municipal president is elected for a three-year term. Its town council has nine councilpersons, who serve as Secretary and councilors of policing and neighborhoods, public works, health and ecology, education, culture and sports, public monuments, parks and gardens, transportation, and nomenclature. The Municipal Council administers the business of the municipality. It is responsible for budgeting and expenditures and producing all required reports for all branches of the municipal administration. Annually it determines educational standards for schools. The Police Commissioners ensure public order and safety. They are tasked with enforcing regulations, distributing materials and administering rulings of general compliance issued by the council.

Neighborhoods and subdivisions

Kanasín follows a mostly grid-like street layout, being made up of the following neighborhoods and subdivisions: ;Neighborhoods: ;Subdivisions:

Demographics

Local festivals

* 8 December Celebration to honor the Immaculate Conception *29 January to 2 February Feast of the Virgin de la Candelaria *March Popular

carnival Carnival (known as Shrovetide in certain localities) is a festive season that occurs at the close of the Christian pre-Lenten period, consisting of Quinquagesima or Shrove Sunday, Shrove Monday, and Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras. Carnival typi ...

Tourist attractions

* Church of San José, built in the seventeenth century *

Hacienda San Ildefonso Teya Hacienda San Ildefonso Teya (aka Hacienda Teya) is located in the Kanasín Municipality in the state of Yucatán in southeastern Mexico. During the seventeenth century it was one of the largest and most profitable cattle ranches in Yucatán. It wa ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kanasin Municipality seats in Yucatán Populated places in Yucatán