Huejúcar is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

and

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

, in

Jalisco Jalisco, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Jalisco, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is located in western Mexico and is bordered by s ...

in central-western

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

. The municipality covers an area of 309.2 km². As of 2020, the municipality had a total population of 5,920. The name Huejúcar means "Place of

Willows Willows, also called sallows and osiers, of the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 350 species (plus numerous hybrids) of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist soils in cold and temperate regions. Most species are known ...

" in

Nahuatl Nahuatl ( ; ), Aztec, or Mexicano is a language or, by some definitions, a group of languages of the Uto-Aztecan language family. Varieties of Nahuatl are spoken by about Nahuas, most of whom live mainly in Central Mexico and have smaller popul ...

. It is about 240 km from the state capital,

Guadalajara Guadalajara ( ; ) is the capital and the most populous city in the western Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco, as well as the most densely populated municipality in Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population ...

. It is next to Santa María de los Ángeles and Tepetongo. The municipality borders with the state of

Zacatecas Zacatecas, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Zacatecas, is one of the Political divisions of Mexico, 31 states of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Zacatecas, 58 municipalities and its capital city is Zacatecas City, Zacatec ...

History

The city of Huejucar can trace its history back beyond the creation of

Nueva Galicia Nuevo Reino de Galicia (New Kingdom of Galicia; ) or simply Nueva Galicia (''New Galicia'', ''Nova Galicia''), known in Nahuatl as Chimalhuacán (‘the land of shield bearers’), was an autonomous kingdom of the Viceroyalty of New Spain. It w ...

in the Viceroyalty of New Spain. In 1530, Pedro Almíndez Chirinos passed through and conquered the area in the name of

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

during his voyage from Cuitzeo, Michoacan to Tepic, Nayarit. On March 13, 1837, a decree is made that Huejucar would become part of the Colotlan Municipality. Later, on November 9, 1861, Huejucar would become its own municipality and twelve years later on September 24, 1873, would receive the title of

Villa A villa is a type of house that was originally an ancient Roman upper class country house that provided an escape from urban life. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the f ...

Geography

The town has average elevation of about and the municipality's elevation varies drastically to as low as in the valleys and as high as in its mountainous areas on the western end of the municipality along the Sierra Madre Occidental Mountains.

Hydrothermal Hydrothermal circulation in its most general sense is the circulation of hot water (Ancient Greek ὕδωρ, ''water'',Liddell, H.G. & Scott, R. (1940). ''A Greek-English Lexicon. revised and augmented throughout by Sir Henry Stuart Jones. with th ...

streams and ponds dot the landscape to the west while the east and northeastern areas lead into the vast Mexican Plateau region in between the

Sierra Madre Occidental The Sierra Madre Occidental is a major mountain range system of the North American Cordillera, that runs northwest–southeast through northwestern and western Mexico, and along the Gulf of California. The Sierra Madre is part of the American C ...

and Oriental regions.Free Maps - Mexican Topography
/ref> Mexican Federal Highway 23 runs north–south which connects Huejucar on the southern terminus to the metropolitan area of

Guadalajara, Jalisco Guadalajara ( ; ) is the capital and the most populous city in the western Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco, as well as the most densely populated municipality in Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population ...

and on its northern terminus to Fresnillo, Zacatecas.

Flora and fauna

Its vegetation is scarce in most of the territory. There are mainly drought-resistant plants such as:

Vachellia farnesiana ''Vachellia farnesiana'', also known as ''Acacia farnesiana'', and previously ''Mimosa farnesiana'', commonly known as sweet acacia, huisache, casha tree, or needle bush, is a species of shrub or small tree in the legume family, Fabaceae. Its flo ...

Mesquite Mesquite is a common name for some plants in the genera ''Neltuma'' and '' Strombocarpa'', which contain over 50 species of spiny, deep-rooted leguminous shrubs and small trees. They are native to dry areas in the Americas. Until 2022, these ge ...

Pitaya Pitaya () or pitahaya () (common names strawberry pear or dragon fruit) is the fruit of several cactus species indigenous to the region of southern Mexico and along the Pacific coasts of Guatemala, Costa Rica, and El Salvador. Pitaya is cult ...

Opuntia ficus-indica ''Opuntia ficus-indica'', the Indian fig opuntia, fig opuntia, or prickly pear, is a species of cactus that has long been a domesticated crop plant grown in agricultural economies throughout Arid climate, arid and Semi-arid climate, semiarid part ...

Agave ''Agave'' (; ; ) is a genus of monocots native to the arid regions of the Americas. The genus is primarily known for its succulent and xerophytic species that typically form large Rosette (botany), rosettes of strong, fleshy leaves. Many plan ...

and some species of

Populus ''Populus'' is a genus of 25–30 species of deciduous flowering plants in the family Salicaceae, native to most of the Northern Hemisphere. English names variously applied to different species include poplar (), aspen, and cottonwood. The we ...

Pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. ''World Flora Online'' accepts 134 species-rank taxa (119 species and 15 nothospecies) of pines as cu ...

and other trees in a small proportion.

Climate

The town of Huejucar, although its average elevation is higher than that of the alpine city of Denver, Colorado in the United States, it is in a semiarid region with monsoonal weather in the summer months (July and August, mostly) with an average rainfall of of rainfall per year and an average temperature of 17.4C (63.3F). Summer months can reach highs on average of 38.3C (100.9F) while winter months reach lows on average of 0.8C (33.4F). Due to the Sierra Madre Occidental Mountains to the west, winds usually gust from the northeast.

Annual Festivities

Huejucar’s yearly fair, which normally lasts 7-10 days, begins in late September and runs until early October. This festival has been a tradition for decades. Entire families travel from neighboring towns like

Colotlán The Municipio (Mexico), municipality of Colotlán is in the northern extremity of the Mexican state of Jalisco. The municipality covers an area of approximately 648 square kilometers. Colotlán is located at . It stands at above sea level. Co ...

, Jerez Zacatecas, and Santa María de los Ángeles to enjoy Huejucar and its traditional festival. The goal of this celebration is to honor San Francisco De Assis the municipality's patron saint, who is respected deeply by those who live in Huejucar, Jalisco. The festival offers a wide range of enjoyable activities for people of all ages. Three female contestants will participate for the title of "queen of the fair" one month before the event. The queen will represent the festivities and locals in Huejucar will have the opportunity to vote for their desired candidate. Live music is one of the most visible forms of entertainment featured at the fair. Many well-known performers and bands have performed here, including Regulo Carro, Chuy Lizarraga, Aldo Trujillo,

La Arrolladora Banda El Limón La Arrolladora Banda El Limón de René Camacho, or simply La Arrolladora, is a Mexican banda from Mazatlán, Sinaloa. In 1997 they signed with Sony Music Latin. In 2003, they switched labels and signed with Disa Records. History Banda El Limón ...

, and Ramon Ayala just to name a few. During the live performances you will see many people enjoying themselves and dancing to the rhythm of the music. Also, there are plenty of carnival games and rides to keep the younger generations entertained. Aside from live music and carnival games, Jaripeos (rodeos) are another major attraction that brings many

charros ''Charro'', in Mexico, is historically the horseman from the countryside, the Ranchero, who lived and worked in the haciendas and performed all his tasks on horseback, working mainly as vaqueros and caporales, among other jobs. He was ren ...

enthusiasts to the

Lienzo charro A ''lienzo charro'' is an arena where '' charros'' hold the events of '' charreada'', ''coleadero'' and ''jaripeo The word () refers to a form of rodeo, particularly bull riding practiced in Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras, ...

to witness the thrills of

Charrería ''Charrería'' (), also known historically as Jaripeo, is the national sport of Mexico and a discipline arising from equestrian activities and livestock traditions used in the ''haciendas'' of the Viceroyalty of New Spain. Evolving from the ...

sportsmanship. Additionally, there is a wide range of restaurants and food stands that will be available for the enjoyment of the attendees.

History

Geography

Flora and fauna

Climate

Annual Festivities

Government

Municipal presidents

References

External links