Naranjal (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: ** Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Ca ...

: "orange grove") is a

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 the

Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * '' Our ...

Veracruz Veracruz (), formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave), is one of the 31 states which, along with Me ...

, located south of the city of

Córdoba Córdoba most commonly refers to: * Córdoba, Spain, a major city in southern Spain and formerly the imperial capital of Islamic Spain * Córdoba, Argentina, 2nd largest city in the country and capital of Córdoba Province Córdoba or Cordoba may ...

Geography

The municipality of Naranjal is located in central Veracruz at an altitude between . It borders the municipalities of Fortín to the north,

Amatlán de los Reyes Amatlán de los Reyes is a municipality in Veracruz, Mexico. It is located about 105.63 mi from state capital Xalapa to the south. It has an area of 148.9 km2. It is located at . The municipality is delimited to the north by Córdoba Municipa ...

to the northeast,

Coetzala Coetzala is a municipality in the Mexican state of Veracruz. It is located in the montane central zone of the State of Veracruz, about 90 km from state capital Xalapa. It has a surface of 26.32 km2. It is located at . The municipality of Coet ...

to the southeast,

Zongolica Zongolica is a municipality located in the south zone in the State of Veracruz, about 100 km from state capital Xalapa. It has a surface of 63.34 km2. It is located at . The name comes from Nahuatl ''Tzontli-coliuhqui'' 'crafty hair'. T ...

to the south,

Tequila Tequila (; ) is a distilled beverage made from the blue agave plant, primarily in the area surrounding the city of Tequila northwest of Guadalajara, and in the Jaliscan Highlands (''Los Altos de Jalisco'') of the central western Mexican state ...

to the southwest, and

Ixtaczoquitlán Ixtaczoquitlán is a city in the Mexican state of Veracruz. It is from Orizaba. It is close to the Fortín–Orizaba railroad and stands on Federal Highways 180 & 190. It serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding municipality of the ...

to the northwest. The municipality covers an area of and comprises 0.03% of the state's area. The municipality is located on the southern bank of the Río Blanco and is watered by that river and its tributaries. Most of the land in Naranjal (90.41%) is used for agriculture. The dominant soils in the municipality are

luvisol Luvisols are a group of soils, comprising one of the 32 Reference Soil Groups in the international system of soil classification, the World Reference Base for Soil Resources (WRB). They are widespread, especially in temperate climates, and are ge ...

acrisol An Acrisol is a Reference Soil Group of the World Reference Base for Soil Resources (WRB). It has a clay-rich subsoil and is associated with humid, tropical climates, such as those found in Brazil, and often supports forested areas. In the USDA so ...

s and

vertisol A vertisol, or vertosol, is a soil type in which there is a high content of expansive clay minerals, many of them known as montmorillonite, that form deep cracks in drier seasons or years. In a phenomenon known as argillipedoturbation, altern ...

s. Naranjal's climate is humid with rain falling mostly in the summer. Average temperatures in the municipality range between , and average annual precipitation ranges between .

History

Naranjal established its first town council in 1814. On 28 March 1831 it was incorporated under the name of San Cristóbal Naranjal as a municipality in the canton of Orizaba in the state of Veracruz. Naranjal became a free municipality on 15 January 1918.

Administration

The municipal government comprises a president, a councillor (

: ''síndico''), and a trustee (''regidor''). The current president of the municipality is Karla Nancy Abad Sosa.

Demographics

In the 2010 Mexican Census, the municipality of Naranjal recorded a population of 4507 inhabitants living in 1049 households. The 2015 Intercensal Survey estimated a population of 4559 inhabitants in Naranjal, of whom 71.11% reported being of

Indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention * Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band * Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehor ...

ancestry and 19.61% reported being of

African African or Africans may refer to: * Anything from or pertaining to the continent of Africa: ** People who are native to Africa, descendants of natives of Africa, or individuals who trace their ancestry to indigenous inhabitants of Africa *** Et ...

ancestry. There are 12 localities in the municipality, of which only the municipal seat, also called Naranjal, is classified as urban. It recorded a population of 2261 inhabitants in the 2010 Census.

Economy

The main economic activity in Naranjal is farming. Coffee, bananas and oranges are the main crops grown, comprising respectively 80%, 10% and 7% of the agricultural land in the municipality.

References

{{Veracruz Municipalities of Veracruz 1831 establishments in Mexico States and territories established in 1831