Iztapalapa ( modern Nahuatl pronunciation ) is one of the Federal District of Mexico City’s 16 boroughs, located on the east side of the entity. The borough is named after and centered on the formerly independent municipality of Iztapalapa, which is officially called Iztapalapa de Cuitláhuac for disambiguation purposes. The rest is made up of a number of other communities which are governed by the city of Iztapalapa.

With a population of 1.8 million as of 2010, Iztapalapa is the most populous borough of Mexico City, and it is also the most populous municipality in the country. Over 90% of its territory is urbanized. The borough transitioned from a rural area with some farms and canals as late as the 1970s, to an area with the only green areas in parks and almost all of its people employed in commerce, services and industry. This is the result of a large influx of people into the borough starting from the 1970s and which still continues. The area has a high level of socioeconomic marginalization, with a significant number of people lacking sufficient access to clean potable water. Crime is also a major problem, with much of it related to drug trafficking and poverty. However, the borough is home of one of Mexico City’s major cultural events, the annual Passion Play in which 450 borough residents participate and about 2 million attend as spectators.

Iztapalapa today is a borough of the Federal District of Mexico City, centered on what used to be an independent settlement with its origins in the pre-Hispanic period. It has a territory of 116.67km2 (11,506 hectares), and is located on the east side of the Federal District bordering the boroughs of Iztacalco, Xochimilco, Tláhuac, Coyoacán and Benito Juárez. The State of Mexico borders the borough on the east side, and Iztapalapa has strong cultural and economic ties to this part of the state.

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