Oaxaca (city)

Oaxaca
City & Municipality
Oaxaca de Juárez
Seal
Oaxaca Location in Mexico
Coordinates: 17°04′04″N 96°43′12″W / 17.06778°N 96.72000°W / 17.06778; -96.72000
Country	Mexico
State	Oaxaca
Founded	1532
Municipal Status	1879
Government
• Municipal President	Javier Villacaña Jiménez  PRI 2014-2016
Area
• City	85.48 km2 (33.00 sq mi)
Elevation of seat	1,555 m (5,102 ft)
Population (2014) Municipality
• City	300,050
• Metropolitan	650,000
Time zone	CST (UTC−6)
• Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC−7)
Postal code (of seat)	68000
Area code(s)	951
Website	(Spanish) /Official site
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Official name	Historic Centre of Oaxaca and Archaeological Site of Monte Albán
Type	Cultural
Criteria	i, ii, iii, iv
Designated	1987 (11th session)
Reference no.	415
State Party	Mexico
Region	Latin America and the Caribbean

The city and municipality of Oaxaca de Juárez, or simply Oaxaca, is the capital and largest city of the Mexican state of the same name. It is located in the Centro District in the Central Valleys region of the state, on the foothills of the Sierra Madre at the base of the Cerro del Fortín extending to the banks of the Atoyac River. This city relies heavily on tourism, which is based on its large number of colonial-era structures as well as the native Zapotec and Mixtec cultures and archeological sites. It, along with the archeological site of Monte Albán, were named a World Heritage Site in 1987. It is also the home of the month-long cultural festival called the "Guelaguetza", which features Oaxacan dance from the seven regions, music and a beauty pageant for indigenous women.

It is nicknamed "la Verde Antequera" (the green Antequera) due to its prior name (Nueva Antequera) and the variety of structures built from a native green stone. The name Oaxaca is derived from the Nahuatl name for the place, Huaxyacac, which was Hispanicized to Guajaca, later spelled Oaxaca. "de Juárez" was added in honor of Benito Juárez, who was a native of this state. The coat of arms for the municipality bears the image of the decapitated Donaji, who was an indigenous princess in the years immediately after the Conquest.

There had been Zapotec and Mixtec settlements in valley of Oaxaca for thousands of years, especially in connection with the important ancient centers of Monte Albán and Mitla, which are close to modern Oaxaca city. The Aztecs entered the valley in 1440 and named it "Huaxyacac," a Nahuatl phrase meaning "among the huaje" (Leucaena leucocephala) trees. A strategic military position was created here, at what is now called the Cerro (large hill) del Fortín to keep an eye on the Zapotec capital of Zaachila and secure the trade route between the Valley of Mexico, Tehuantepec and what is now Central America. When the Spanish arrived in 1521, the Zapotecs and the Mixtecs were involved in one of their many wars. Spanish conquest would end this fighting.

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Wikipedia