Cotija is a municipality in the Mexican state of Michoacán. The municipality has an area of 504.05 km2 (0.91% of the surface of the state), and is bordered to the north by Jiquilpan and Villamar, to the east by Tocumbo, and to south by the state of Jalisco. The municipality had a population of 18,207 inhabitants according to the 2005 census.[1] Its municipal seat is the city of Cotija de la Paz (pop. 12,453).[2]
Cotija is the birthplace of several religious figures, including Saint Rafael Guízar Valencia and Father Marcial Maciel. The economy of the municipality is mostly based on agriculture and ranching.[3] Cotija cheese is named after the city.[4]
The municipal president of Cotija and its many outlying communities was José Mendoza Morfín in 2008.[5]