Teotlalpan

Teotlalpan (Nahuatl: teōtlālpan) was a pre-Columbian region in the north of the Valley of Mexico and actual Mezquital Valley, founded by the Tepanecs and inhabited by Otomi people. This region was knew in all Spanish Colonial period.

Teotlalpan word in Spanish language has got many interpretations, the most common is Land of gods, the etymology is teotl (god) and tlalli (land). Francisco del Paso y Troncoso tells us, a cardinal point of the Aztecs from Mictlampa or Land of deaths.

Other definition is Desert valley, in nahuatl language teotlalli means; desert, valley or flat, this definition said by Rémi Simeon is correct, almost all region is dry with some hills, mesas and small mountain ranges.

This territory was known by Chichimeca-Nahuas as strange land, dangerous and arid planes or deserts, was administrated by Kingdom of Acolhuacan. The fields are irrigated along the Tula River, the edges of the rivers were used for irrigation and husbandry, the region is characterized by green river valleys and very dry hills.

It was never well defined the northern region of Valley of Mexico, but included the provinces of Hueypoxtla and Axacopan. It is said to begin at the end of Otompan, the altepeme as Tepotzotlan, Huehuetoca, Coyotepec, Epazoyocan, Zitlaltepec, Itzcuincuitlapilan, Hueypoxtla, Tzompanco, Xaltocan, Xilotzinco, Tequixquiac, Tetlapanaloyan, Apaxco, Ajoloapan, Zacacalco, Tolcayocan and spread across arid valley now known as Mezquital Valley to places as Tizayuca, Tepeji, Chantepec (San Ildefonso), Atotonilco, Tlaxcoapan, Atitalaquia, Tetepanco, Tolnacuxtla, Chilcuautla, Tepatepec, Mizquiahuala, Ixmiquilpan, Zimapan, Nopala, Tecozautla, Actopan Valley, Chapantongo, Nopalapa, Coscotitlan, Pachuca, Cempohuallan, Tolcayocan, Zapotlan and all region bordering the mythical city of Tula.

After the fall of Tula Xicocotitlan, a large desert region was populated by the Toltecs, people otomi and nahua, this region was named by Tepanecs of Tlacopan as Teotlalpan. With the expansion of chichimecas, Teotlalpan was important in Mesoamerica, no surprise that derives this name of the region by the presence of ancient Teotihuacan people.

The submission of the altepemeh was not easy, there were wars between various groups, but eventually all towns or altepetl were conquered by Nahua tribes and were forced to pay taxes to the tlatoanis of Mexico Tenochtitlan. The territory was divided in provinces as Xilotepec, Axacopan or Hueypoxtla.

...
Wikipedia