San Jerónimo Tlacochahuaya is a town and municipality in the Mexican state of

Oaxaca Oaxaca ( , also , , from nci, Huāxyacac ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Oaxaca ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Oaxaca), is one of the 32 states that compose the political divisions of Mexico, Federative Entities of Mexico. It is ...

, 21 km from the city of

on Federal Highway 190 between

Santa Maria del Tule Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a Legend, legendary figure originating in Western Christianity, Western Christian culture who is said to Christmas gift-bringer, bring ...

and

Mitla Mitla is the second-most important archeological site in the state of Oaxaca in Mexico, and the most important of the Zapotec culture. The site is located 44 km from the city of Oaxaca, in the upper end of the Tlacolula Valley, one of the ...

. It is part of the

Tlacolula District Tlacolula District is located in the east of the Valles Centrales Region of the State of Oaxaca, Mexico. Municipalities The district includes the following municipalities: * Albarradas * Benito Juarez, Oaxaca * CD.Yagul * El Carrizal, Oaxaca * ...

in the east of the Valles Centrales Region. The name Tlacochahuaya comes from Nahuatl and means “in wet land” or “in the swamp.”

The town

Tradition states that the town was founded by a Zapotec warrior by the name of Cochicahuala, which means “he who fights by night”. After the

Conquest Conquest is the act of military subjugation of an enemy by force of arms. Military history provides many examples of conquest: the Roman conquest of Britain, the Mauryan conquest of Afghanistan and of vast areas of the Indian subcontinent, t ...

the land was granted to Señor Don Gaspar Calderón and the area was evangelized by the Dominicans. Its main church is the Templo de San Jerónimo, which was built along with a monastery at the end of the 16th century. It has notable altarpieces (retablos) and an organ that dates from colonial times. Normally they let visitors climb the massive structure to look closer. The organ was built between 1725 and 1730 and restored in 1990-1991. It is registered with the Instituto de Órganos Históricos de Oaxaca (Institute of Historic Organs of Oaxaca).

The municipality

The main economic activities are agriculture (corn, garlic, beans and various fruits), dairy farming and the production of

mezcal Mezcal (, ), sometimes spelled mescal, is a distilled alcoholic beverage made from any type of agave. The word ''mezcal'' comes from Nahuatl , which means "oven-cooked agave", from and .What is MezcalElmezcal.org Traditionally the word " ...

. As municipal seat, San Jerónimo Tlacochahuaya has governing jurisdiction over the following communities: La Loma, Luis Alonso León, Macuilxóchitl de Artigas Carranza and Ojo de Agua.

References

External links

Santos in Oaxaca's Ancient Churches: San Jerónimo Tlacochahuaya
- Art-historical study of the ''santos'' (statues of saints) in the church. {{DEFAULTSORT:San Jeronimo Tlacochahuaya Municipalities of Oaxaca