Salamanca (

Otomi The Otomi (; ) are an Indigenous people of Mexico inhabiting the central Mexican Plateau (Altiplano) region. The Otomi are an Indigenous people of the Americas who inhabit a discontinuous territory in central Mexico. They are linguistically rel ...

: ''Xidoo'' "Place of

Tepetate Tepetate (Spanish ''tepetate''; Nahuatl ''tepetlatl'') is a Mexican term for a geological horizon, hardened by compaction or cementation, found in Mexican volcanic regions. Tepetates at the surface are problematic for agriculture, because of thei ...

") is a city and municipality in the

Mexican state A Mexican State (), officially the Free and Sovereign State (), is a constituent federative entity of Mexico according to the Constitution of Mexico. Currently there are 31 states, each with its own constitution, government, state governor, a ...

Guanajuato Guanajuato, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Guanajuato, is one of the 32 states that make up the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Guanajuato, 46 municipalities and its cap ...

. The city was founded on January 1, 1603, as 'Villa de Salamanca' by the Viceroy Gaspar de Zúñiga, fifth Count of Monterrey, who was originally from

Salamanca Salamanca () is a Municipality of Spain, municipality and city in Spain, capital of the Province of Salamanca, province of the same name, located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is located in the Campo Charro comarca, in the ...

(

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 ...

). The town was founded in the lands of the

Bajío The Bajío (the ''lowland'') is a cultural and geographical region within the Mexican Plateau, central Mexican plateau which roughly spans from northwest of Greater Mexico City, Mexico City to the main silver mines in the northern-central part ...

, after cattle ranchers and poor farmers, a few Spaniards, and small groups of Otomis who formerly occupied a village named Xidoo, already lived in the area. In recent years, many refineries have opened, and Salamanca has grown rapidly to become an important site for manufacturing and service industry in the region. Also, the University of Guanajuato has made many scientific contributions to develop agricultural and industrial technologies, giving a boost to the local and regional industries. The city reported a 2020 census population of 160,682. The fourth largest city in the state (behind León,

Irapuato Irapuato is a Mexican city and municipalities of Mexico, municipality located at the foot of the Arandas Hill (in Spanish Language, Spanish: ''Cerro de Arandas''), in the central region of the Mexican state, state of Guanajuato. It lies between the ...

, and

Celaya Celaya (; Otomi: ) is a city and its surrounding municipality in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico, located in the southeast quadrant of the state. It is the third most populous city in the state, with a 2005 census population of 310,413. The muni ...

), it is also the largest of four places called "Salamanca" in Mexico.

Cuisine

Salamanca's cuisine is very diverse because, thanks to the oil refinery, it is a city that has people from all over the country, from cities such as

Veracruz Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entit ...

Oaxaca Oaxaca, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Oaxaca, is one of the 32 states that compose the political divisions of Mexico, Federative Entities of the Mexico, United Mexican States. It is divided into municipalities of Oaxaca, 570 munici ...

and

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

. Each of these cities has its own variety of food, so one can find

enchilada An enchilada (, ) is a Mexican cuisine, Mexican dish consisting of a corn tortilla rolled around a filling and covered with a savory sauce. Enchiladas can be filled with various ingredients, including meats, cheese, beans, potatoes, vegetables, ...

s, wheat gorditas,

pambazo Pambazo () is a Mexican dish or '' antojito'' (very similar to the torta) made with pambazo bread dipped and fried in a red '' guajillo'' pepper sauce. It is traditionally filled with ''papas con chorizo'' (potatoes with chorizo) or with ''pap ...

hamburger A hamburger (or simply a burger) consists of fillings—usually a patty of ground meat, typically beef—placed inside a sliced bun or bread roll. The patties are often served with cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, bacon, or chilis ...

s, its famous

carnitas Carnitas, literally meaning "little meats", in Mexican cuisine, is a dish made by braising, simmering and frying pork in its own fat, lard or cooking oil. The name "''Carnitas''" is, historically, the colloquial name given in Mexico for the Fren ...

(pulled pork),

arrachera Skirt steak is the US name for a cut of beef steak from the plate. It is long, flat, and prized for its flavor rather than tenderness. It is distinct from hanger steak (US), also called skirt (UK) or onglet (France), a generally similar a ...

, cabrito (goat),

birria Birria () is a regional variation of barbacoa from western Mexico, mainly made with goat, beef or lamb. The meat is marinated in an adobo made of vinegar, dried chiles, garlic, and herbs and spices (including cumin, bay leaves, and thyme) bef ...

, barbecue,

cecina Cecina may refer to * Cecina (river), a river in Tuscany, Italy * Cecina (meat), a Spanish and Mexican culinary specialty made of beef * ''Cecina'' (gastropod), a genus of freshwater snails in the family Pomatiopsidae * Cecina, Tuscany, Italy * C ...

, and pizza. There are food stands on virtually every street corner. Many types of locally made

ice pop An ice pop is a liquid/cream-based frozen dessert on a stick. Unlike ice cream or sorbet, which are whipped while freezing to prevent ice crystal formation, an ice pop is frozen while at rest, becoming a solid block of ice with an icy textur ...

s &

ice cream Ice cream is a frozen dessert typically made from milk or cream that has been flavoured with a sweetener, either sugar or an alternative, and a spice, such as Chocolate, cocoa or vanilla, or with fruit, such as strawberries or peaches. Food ...

are also popular in the city.

Industry

The

petrochemical industry file:Jampilen Petrochemical Co. 02.jpg, 300px, Jampilen Petrochemical co., Asaluyeh, Iran The petrochemical industry is concerned with the production and trade of petrochemicals. A major part is constituted by the plastics industry, plastics (poly ...

is the primary one in the city, giving rise to numerous companies and bus transport services available for employees. The strategy was to boost the creation and development of the so-called "industrial corridor" of the Bajio. The largest

Pemex Pemex (a portmanteau of Petróleos Mexicanos, which translates to ''Mexican Petroleum'' in English; ) is the Mexico, Mexican State ownership, state-owned Petroleum industry, petroleum corporation managed and operated by the government of Mexico, ...

refinery in Mexico is located in Salamanca, and it is the 11th largest crude oil refinery in the world. Also noteworthy is CFE Thermoelectric, a source of significant employment in the municipality. In February 2014,

Mazda is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Fuchū, Hiroshima (town), Fuchū, Hiroshima Prefecture, Hiroshima, Japan. The company was founded on January 30, 1920, as Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd. ...

opened its North American plant outside of Salamanca. At full production, the plant is expected to produce up to 240,000 vehicles per year and employ over 4,600 workers. About 30 percent of the vehicles sold in the United States will be sourced from this factory.

Communications

Road links

It is possible to get to Salamanca by Federal Highway 45, which links the cities of Querétaro, Celaya, Irapuato, Silao and León; as well as

through Federal Highway 57. Federal Highway 43 also provides links south to the cities of

Morelia Morelia (; from 1545 to 1828 known as Valladolid; Otomi language, Otomi: ) is a city and municipal seat of the municipalities of Mexico, municipality of Morelia in the north-central part of the state of Michoacán in central Mexico. It is both th ...

and

Lázaro Cárdenas Lázaro Cárdenas del Río (; 21 May 1895 – 19 October 1970) was a Mexican army officer and politician who served as president of Mexico from 1934 to 1940. Previously, he served as a general in the Constitutional Army during the Mexican Revo ...

in Michoacán.

Air transportation

While the city itself doesn't have an airport, it can be served by the

Bajío International Airport León/Bajio International Airport (); officially ''Aeropuerto Internacional de Guanajuato'' (Guanajuato International Airport) , is an international airport situated in Silao, Guanajuato, Mexico. It is the main international airport serving the Le ...

(BJX), which serves the entire state of Guanajuato; the airport itself is about 50 kilometers away.

Rail transportation

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 ...

hasn't had any long-distance rail passenger service since 2000 (except for a tourist line in the northwest), however there are plans to build a statewide Interurban Railway linking the same cities currently linked by Highway 45, in addition to the state's capital. However, this project has been stalled for at least 10 years. Article on the Tren Interurbano's status. Retrieved 2008-10-24.

TV/Radio stations

There are four available AM radio stations in the city: XEMAS, XEEMM, XEZH, XESAG, as well as one local TV channel available to local cable subscribers.

Culture

The city has a rich

craft A craft or trade is a pastime or an occupation that requires particular skills and knowledge of skilled work. In a historical sense, particularly the Middle Ages and earlier, the term is usually applied to people occupied in small scale pr ...

industry, especially statues of wax, bronze, and pewter, and is also the location of the headquarters of the Center for the Arts of Guanajuato. The former convent of San Juan de Sahagún and its church (with 12 monumental altarpieces artistically carved with 24 carat gold-plated sheet), and the former parish of St. Bartolomé Apostle are located within the city.

Higher education

Salamanca offers several :
Engineering Division, Irapuato-Salamanca Campus (DICIS)

University of Guanajuato The Universidad de Guanajuato (in English, the University of Guanajuato) is a university based in the Mexican state of Guanajuato, made up of about 47,108 students in programs ranging from high school level to the doctorate level. Over 30,89 ...

Technological University of Salamanca (UTS)
* Centro de Estudios Profesionales de Salamanca (CEPSA) * University of Salamanca University of La Salle Bajio * University of Salamanca

University of Leon A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

* School of Engineering and Architecture of Bajio ESIABAC

Sports

Salamanca currently had a soccer team named Petroleros de Salamanca C.F.C. (known as the Oilers) playing in Liga Premier.

Climate

Notable people

* Guillermina Jiménez Chabolla "Flor Silvestre" – singer, actress, and equestrienne who paid tribute to Salamanca in one of her early hits,
Adoro mi tierra
(1950). * Enriqueta Jiménez Chabolla "La Prieta Linda" – singer and actress.

References

Link to tables of population data from Census of 2020
INEGI: Instituto Nacional de Estadística, Geografía e Informática
Guanajuato
Enciclopedia de los Municipios de México

External links

Presidencia Municipal de Salamanca
Official website {{Authority control Populated places in Guanajuato Municipalities of Guanajuato Populated places established in 1603 1603 establishments in the Spanish Empire