Tepalcingo is a town in the
Mexican state of
Morelos. It at . The name
Nahuatl root ''tekpa-tl'' (flint), ''tzintli'' (saves honor), ''tzinco'' (back of an individual), so in sum it means ''tekpatzinko'' "down or behind the flints".
Tepalcingo limits to the north with
Ayala and
Jonacatepec
Jonacatepec de Leondro Valle is a city in the Mexican state of Morelos. The city serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding municipality of the same name. The municipality reported 15,690 inhabitants in the year 2015 census.
The name ''Jo ...
; to the south with
Tlaquiltenango
Tlaquiltenango is a city in the Mexican state of Morelos. It is south of Mexico city and southeast of Cuernavaca, the state capital via Mexican Federal Highway 95D.
The city serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding municipality, with ...
and the State of
Puebla; to the east with
Axochiapan and Jonacatepec; to the west with Ayala and Tlaquiltenango. It is 1,160 meters (3,806 ft.) above sea level.
The city serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding municipality, with which it shares a name. It reported 27,187 inhabitants in the 2015 census.
History
Prehispanic History
It is believed that in 1272,
Mixtec
The Mixtecs (), or Mixtecos, are indigenous Mesoamerican peoples of Mexico inhabiting the region known as La Mixteca of Oaxaca and Puebla as well as La Montaña Region and Costa Chica Regions of the state of Guerrero. The Mixtec Culture w ...
women, men, and children who broke away from Iloala (present-day
Iguala Guerrero founded the town of Tepalcingo. Ruins believed to belong to the ''Pueblo Viejo'', located in the hills of Zopiloapan, west of modern Tepalcingo, have been found.
Tepalcingo was later conquered by the
Aztecs in 1445, when it was subject to Huaxtepec (
Oaxtepec
Oaxtepec is a town within the municipality of Yautepec and the Cuautla metropolitan area in the eastern part of the Mexican state of Morelos. Its main industry is tourism, mostly aimed at the inhabitants of nearby Mexico City, and the town poss ...
).
Colonial History
After the
Conquest of Mexico
The Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, also known as the Conquest of Mexico or the Spanish-Aztec War (1519–21), was one of the primary events in the Spanish colonization of the Americas. There are multiple 16th-century narratives of the eve ...
, Tepalcingo paid tribute directly to the Spanish crown until 1532 when it was incorporated in the lands of
Hernán Cortés when it became subject to Yecapichtlan (
Yecapixtla
Yecapixtla ( nah, Yecapixtlān ) is a town and municipality located in the northeast of the state of Morelos in central Mexico. Yecapixtla means, ''Land of men and women with sharp noses''. The town is home to one of the monastery complexes associa ...
). Martín Cortés, son of the conquistador, faced an independence struggle of people who did not want to be subjects of the ''marquisate'', and from 1565 Tepalcingo was included in what is called the ''Tlalnahuac'',
a group of fifteen towns south of Yecapixtla.
Cortes gained possession of the lands in 1587, after which they passed to the Dukes of Terranova and then the Dukes of Monteleone.
The inhabitants of the 15 villages of the Tlalnahuac were decimated by smallpox, plague, measles, and other diseases brought from Europe since they did not have defenses against so many new diseases. Thus the people of the Tlalnahuac could not organize a coordinated resistance, and for 350 years they were subjugated by the haciendas.
Independence and 19th Century
Vicente Guerrero
Vicente Ramón Guerrero (; baptized August 10, 1782 – February 14, 1831) was one of the leading revolutionary generals of the Mexican War of Independence. He fought against Spain for independence in the early 19th century, and later served as ...
abolished the marquisate in 1829; however, for many years, part of the hacienda properties would remain in the hands of descendants of Hernán and Martín Cortés. The people of Tepalcingo vainly petitioned for restitution of their lands in 1853.
Upon independence in 1821, the modern territory of Morelos was part of the
State of Mexico. In 1869 the state of Morelos was founded, and Tepalcingo, including Huautla, became a municipality on June 14, 1872. A smallpox epidemic decimated the area between 1895 and 1910; between August 1903 and January 1904, 573 of 574 children in Tepelcingo died.
Revolution and 20th Century
Local residents Dionisio Gómez, Severiano Pérez, Claudio Pérez, Isabel X., Macedonio Coyote, Martín Barba, Epifanio Vázquez, Severiano Pariente, and Severiano Trejo died during the
Mexican Revolution.
21st Century
Although the epicenter of the
September 19, 2017 earthquake was in
Axochiapan, the municipality of Tepalcingo was among the most severely affected. Public, private, and religious buildings were seriously damaged; there was structural damage to the Sanctuary of Jesus of Nazareth, which nearly collapsed; all the other churches of the municipality were damaged as well as the municipal presidency, the market, and other buildings. Municipal President Alfredo Sánchez Vélez said that 700 homes could not be used, while others had cracks. No lives were reported lost. The Secretary of Health reported that 486 homes were destroyed and 2,263 were damaged, more than in any other municipality.
Alfredo Sánchez Velez of
PVEM
The Ecological Green Party of Mexico ( es, Partido Verde Ecologista de México, , PVEM or PVE) is a green-conservative political party in Mexico. In the 2012 legislative elections, the party took 34 seats in the Chamber of Deputies (out of 50 ...
(Green Party) was elected Presidente Municipal (mayor) in the election of July 1, 2018. Violence is a major concern; 400 people tried to lynch four men suspected of kidnapping a child on January 22, 2019.
The state of Morelos reported 209 cases and 28 deaths due to the
COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico
The COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico is part of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, worldwide pandemic of COVID-19, coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by SARS-CoV-2, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 ().
The virus was confirmed to ha ...
as of April 27, 2020; two cases were reported in Tepalcingo. Schools and many businesses were closed from mid March until June 1. Ninety-five cases were reported in the municipality on December 27, 2020. Vaccinations for senior citizens (60+) are scheduled to begin on March 12, 2021.
Fifteen people died in
Axochiapan,
Jantetelco
Jantetelco, officially Jantetelco de Matamoros, is a city in the Mexican state of Morelos.
. The city serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding municipality of the same name. The municipality reported 17,238 inhabitants in the year 2015 ce ...
, and Tepalcingo due to adulterated alcohol on
Mother's Day
Mother's Day is a celebration honoring the mother of the family or individual, as well as motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in society. It is celebrated on different days in many parts of the world, most commonly in th ...
.
Culture
The oldest fair in Morelos is held in Tepelcingo
on the third Friday of
Lent
Lent ( la, Quadragesima, 'Fortieth') is a solemn religious observance in the liturgical calendar commemorating the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring temptation by Satan, according to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke ...
. Visitors come from all over Morelos and nearby states; they enjoy
pulque
Pulque (; nci, metoctli), or octli, is an alcoholic beverage made from the fermented sap of the maguey (agave) plant. It is traditional in central Mexico, where it has been produced for millennia. It has the color of milk, a rather viscous c ...
, and traditional dances. Cattle and handicrafts, including boxes of ''Olinalá'' aromatic wood are sold. This is the fourth most important fair of Mexico and the largest popular fair in Mexico type ''Tiaquixtli''.
There are three types of music: ''Tecuanes'', ''Tlatenquiza'', and ''Cañeros''.
Cuisine includes green
mole
Mole (or Molé) may refer to:
Animals
* Mole (animal) or "true mole", mammals in the family Talpidae, found in Eurasia and North America
* Golden moles, southern African mammals in the family Chrysochloridae, similar to but unrelated to Talpida ...
of pepita (pipián) with
tamales
A tamale, in Spanish tamal, is a traditional Mesoamerican dish made of masa, a dough made from nixtamalized corn, which is steamed in a corn husk or banana leaf. The wrapping can either be discarded prior to eating or used as a plate. Tamale ...
of cenizas, red turkey mole,
cecina with cheese, cream, and green sauce with guaje; barbecue of kid and wild pigeons stewed in pipián or in green sauce.
Sierra de Huautla
Established in 2006, the ''Sierra de Huautla Biosphere Reserve'' (REBIOSH) covers 59,031 hectares (145,869 acres) in the
Balsas River Basin of the municipalities of
Tlaquiltenango
Tlaquiltenango is a city in the Mexican state of Morelos. It is south of Mexico city and southeast of Cuernavaca, the state capital via Mexican Federal Highway 95D.
The city serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding municipality, with ...
,
Amacuzac
Amacuzac is a city in the Mexican state of Morelos. The name means ''In the River of Yellow Amates.'' Amacuzac stands at , at a mean height of 900 meters (3,000 ft.) above sea level. The city serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding munici ...
, Tepalcingo,
Jojutla
Jojutla is a municipality in the state of Morelos, Mexico. Its municipal seat is the city of ''Jojutla de Juárez''. The name ''Jojutla'' comes from Nahuatl ''Xoxōuhtlān'' () and means, ''Place of abundant blue skies''. Another interpretation is ...
, and
Puente de Ixtla. Its rough topology varies from 700 to 2,240 meters (2,297 to 7,349 feet) above sea level in the Balsas Basin and constitutes a rich reservoir of endemic species to Mexico. There is a broad range of ecosystem, including low deciduous forest, gallery vegetation, and pine and oak forests. 939 species of plants, 44 species of butterflies, 71 species of mammals, 208 species of birds, 53 species of reptiles, 18 species of amphibians, and 14 species of fish have been noted.
Among the species of animals are
jaguars,
short-horned Baronia butterfly,
beaded lizard,
military macaw
The military macaw (''Ara militaris'') is a large parrot and a medium-sized macaw that gets its name from its predominantly green plumage resembling a military parade uniform. It is native to forests of Mexico and South America and though conside ...
,
roufus-backed robin,
Balsas screech owl,
Pileated flycatcher,
mountain lion
The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large cat native to the Americas. Its range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mammal in the Western Hemisphere. ...
,
ocelot,
margay
The margay (''Leopardus wiedii'') is a small wild cat native to Central and South America. A solitary and nocturnal cat, it lives mainly in primary evergreen and deciduous forest.
Until the 1990s, margays were hunted illegally for the wildlif ...
,
bobcat, and
jaguarundi.
Tourism
Tourism includes the Pre-Hispanic ''Pueblo Viejo'',
''Las Termas'' thermal water park of Atotonilco, with 29 °C (84 °F) water and the ''Los Delfines'' water park. There is Ecotourism- in the ''Sierra de Huatla'', the scenic view of the ''Cerrito Tepactzin'', and the dam.
The sanctuary of the Lord of Tepalcingo, the churches of Santa Mónica, Holy Cross, and Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, and the parish of San Martín Obispo (feast November 11), as well as the Hacienda de San Nicolás Tolentino are also popular with tourists.
Shrine of the Lord of Tepalcingo
According to legend, in the 16th century, a girl found a small
0 centimeter tallwooden figure in the river. The figure represented Jesus Christ tied by his arms to a column. A small hermitage was built where the figure was venerated. Over the years, the sculpture was moved, first to the chapel of Santa Cruz, and then to that of San Martín. In the 18th century, a craftsman from Puebla was commissioned to make a larger sculpture of the Patron Saint, but, unlike the Lord of the Column, he was asked to change the figure to Jesus of Nazareth with a cross. The figure was brought to Tepalcingo and the men who were carrying it said, "it became heavy". A church made of yellow stone from
Chalcatcingo was built in that exact place.
Agustín Pila Dreinhofer, in the book ''Arquitectura Barroca'' (UNAM, 2013), highlights the Shrine of Tepalcingo as the best example of popular baroque in New Spain. The most striking aspect of this temple is its main façade or doorway, in pink - "a true theological treatise", according to Pila Dreinhofer -, with elements, twisted columns, animals, characters and scenes from the Old and New Testaments, from the Creation of the world until the Last Supper; made in stucco, similar to a technique used in pyramids and pre-Hispanic buildings.
Communities
Tepalcingo is divided into 20 localities; the most important are: Tepalcingo (the municipal seat), Huitchila, Ixtlilco El Chico, Ixtlilco, Ixtlilco El Grande, Los Sauces, El Tepehuaje, El Limón, Pitzotlán, El Pastor, and Zacapalco.
See also
*
List of people from Morelos, Mexico
The following are people who were born, raised, or who gained significant prominence for living in the Mexican state of Morelos:
''This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by exp ...
References
External links
*https://web.archive.org/web/20050324025325/http://e-tepalcingo.gob.mx/
*https://web.archive.org/web/20040509185845/http://e-municipios.e-morelos.gob.mx/tepalcingo.htm
{{Morelos
Municipalities of Morelos
Populated places in Morelos
Nahua settlements