Xicotepec (in Nahuatl: xico; tepetl, ' jicote or bumblebee; hill' 'Hill of jicotes'') is one of the 217 municipalities that make up the Mexican state of Puebla in central-eastern

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. It is located within the Sierra Norte de Puebla and belongs to the first region of the state. Its head is the city of Xicotepec de Juárez, which has been recognized by the Mexico's Secretary of Tourism as one of the 121

pueblos mágicos The Programa Pueblos Mágicos (; "Magical Towns Programme") is an initiative led by Mexico's Secretariat of Tourism, with support from other federal agencies, to promote a series of towns around the country that offer visitors special experien ...

(magical towns) in the country since 2012.

History

It is said that the first expeditionaries of this place were the

Olmecs The Olmecs () were the earliest known major Mesoamerican civilization. Following a progressive development in Soconusco, they occupied the tropical lowlands of the modern-day Mexican states of Veracruz and Tabasco. It has been speculated that ...

, who found on these lands a depression that seemed adequate to raise their ceremonial center; torrential rains, its special topography, the confluence of two rivers and dense vegetation made it the ideal place to live. A

Huastec Huastec can refer to either: *Huastec people, an indigenous group of Mexico *Huastec language (also called "Wasteko" and "Teenek"), spoken by the Huastec people * Huastec civilization The Huastec civilization (sometimes spelled Huaxtec or Wastek ...

warrior named Cuextécatl fought and expelled the Olmecs, withdrawing them to the coast, thus the Huastecs took possession of the place. This place gained importance and was categorized as ceremonial center, which came to satisfy the religious needs of the inhabitants of a vast region, from

Teotihuacan Teotihuacan (Spanish: ''Teotihuacán'') (; ) is an ancient Mesoamerican city located in a sub-valley of the Valley of Mexico, which is located in the State of Mexico, northeast of modern-day Mexico City. Teotihuacan is known today as t ...

to the coast of the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United ...

, and also encouraged the emergence of human settlements in the area, allowing the confluence of various ethnic groups. Other versions indicate that the first inhabitants established within the region were

Otomi The Otomi (; es, Otomí ) are an indigenous people of Mexico inhabiting the central Mexican Plateau (Altiplano) region. The Otomi are an indigenous people of Mexico who inhabit a discontinuous territory in central Mexico. They are linguisticall ...

groups, which settled approximately in 300 B.C.E. Later, during the 5th century, these lands were inhabited by

Totonac The Totonac are an indigenous people of Mexico who reside in the states of Veracruz, Puebla, and Hidalgo. They are one of the possible builders of the pre-Columbian city of El Tajín, and further maintained quarters in Teotihuacán (a city ...

settlers from

El Tajín El Tajín is a pre-Columbian archeological site in southern Mexico and is one of the largest and most important cities of the Classic era of Mesoamerica. A part of the Classic Veracruz culture, El Tajín flourished from 600 to 1200 CE and duri ...

. Towards the year 1120, the region was conquered by

Huemac In Mexica legendary tradition Huemac ( fl. c. 11th century), also spelled Hueymac or Huehmac, is described as being the last king of the (equally legendary and semi-mythical) Toltec state before the fall of Tula/ Tollan. His name is traditionall ...

, ruler of the Toltec people, which makes it a manor, five months later

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

tribes appropriated the place, remaining for more than forty years, until it was reconquered by Metlaltoyuca in 1162. Approximately in 1325 the Acolhua tribe, led by Tlachotla, invaded the territory and integrated it into their manor. In 1432 the territory was tributary of Texcoco. Nezahualcóyotl appointed the Xicotepec manor to Quetzalpatzin.

Coat of arms

The glyph is an indigenous drawing from Nahuatl origin that shows two main figures; the green shape represents a hill, and on top of it a representation of a jicote. It is necessary to clarify that the glyph is the graphic representation of the meaning name given to the city, therefore, it implies that Xicotepec is the hill of the jicotes (or bumblebees).

Geography

Villa Ávila Camacho, also known as La Ceiba, is a town that lies in the northeast of the municipality, on the banks of the Río San Marcos. Another nearby attraction is the Tlaxcalantongo Falls, by the town of the same name. Tlaxcolotongo Falls

References

__FORCETOC__ Municipalities of Puebla Pueblos Mágicos {{Puebla-geo-stub