Guanajuato

This article is about a state in Mexico. For other uses, see Guanajuato (disambiguation).
Guanajuato
Uanahuatö (Otomí)
State
Free and Sovereign State of Guanajuato Estado Libre y Soberano de Guanajuato (Spanish)
Hyodi Uanahuatö (Otomí)
Flag of Guanajuato
Flag
Coat of arms of Guanajuato
Coat of arms
State of Guanajuato within Mexico
State of Guanajuato within Mexico
Coordinates: 21°1′N 101°16′W / 21.017°N 101.267°W / 21.017; -101.267
CountryMexico
CapitalGuanajuato
Largest CityLeón
Largest metroGreater León
Municipalities46
AdmissionDecember 20, 1823[1]
Order2nd
Government
 • Governor Diego Sinhué Rodríguez Vallejo
 • Senators[2] Ricardo Sheffield Padilla [es]
Virginia Magaña Fonseca
Miguel Márquez Márquez
 • Deputies[3]
Area
[4]
 • Total
30,607 km2 (11,817 sq mi)
 Ranked 22nd
Highest elevation
[5]
3,110 m (10,200 ft)
Population
 (2020)[6]
 • Total
6,166,934
 • Rank6th
 • Density200/km2 (520/sq mi)
  • Rank5th
DemonymGuanajuatense
GDP
[7]
 • TotalMXN 1.212 trillion
(US$60.3 billion) (2022)
 • Per capita(US$9,568) (2022)
Time zoneUTC−6 (CST)
Postal code
36–38
Area code
ISO 3166 codeMX-GUA
HDIIncrease 0.736 high ranked 26th of 32
WebsiteOfficial Web site
^ a. The state's GDP was MXN 329,720,355,000 in 2008,[8] an amount corresponding to US$25,759,402,740, a dollar being worth 12.80 pesos (value as of June 3, 2010).[9]

Guanajuato (Spanish pronunciation: [gwanaˈxwato] ⓘ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Guanajuato (Spanish: Estado Libre y Soberano de Guanajuato), is one of the 32 states that make up the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 46 municipalities and its capital city is Guanajuato.

It is located in central Mexico and is bordered by the states of Jalisco to the west, Zacatecas to the northwest, San Luis Potosí to the north, Querétaro to the east, and Michoacán to the south. It covers an area of 30,608 km2 (11,818 sq mi). The state is home to several historically important cities, especially those along the "Bicentennial Route", which retraces the path of Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla's insurgent army at the beginning of the Mexican War of Independence. This route begins at Dolores Hidalgo, and passes through the Sanctuary of Atotonilco, San Miguel de Allende, Celaya, and the capital of Guanajuato. Other important cities in the state include León, the state's biggest city, Salamanca, and Irapuato. The first town established by the Spaniards in Guanajuato is Acámbaro while the first to be named a city is Salvatierra.

Guanajuato is between the arid north of the country and the lusher south, and is geographically part of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt, the Mexican Plateau. It was initially settled by the Spanish in the 1520s due to mineral deposits found around the city of Guanajuato, but areas such as the Bajío region also became important for agriculture and livestock. Mining and agriculture were the mainstays of the state's economy, but have since been eclipsed by the secondary sector. Guanajuato has particularly seen growth in the automotive industry. The name Guanajuato comes from Purépecha kuanhasï juáta (or in older orthography "quanax huato"), which means "frog hill".[10][11]

  1. ^ Benson, Nettie Lee (1994). "La diputación provincial y el federalismo mexicano" (in Spanish). ISBN 9789681205867. Retrieved 9 July 2018 – via Books.google.com.
  2. ^ "Senadores por Guanajuato LXI Legislatura". Senado de la Republica. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved February 21, 2010.
  3. ^ "Listado de Diputados por Grupo Parlamentario del Estado de Durango". Camara de Diputados. Archived from the original on July 20, 2011. Retrieved February 21, 2010.
  4. ^ "Resumen". Cuentame INEGI. Archived from the original on May 12, 2013. Retrieved February 12, 2013.
  5. ^ "Relieve". Cuentame INEGI. Archived from the original on January 14, 2010. Retrieved February 21, 2010.
  6. ^ "México en cifras". January 2016.
  7. ^ Citibanamex (June 13, 2023). "Indicadores Regionales de Actividad Económica 2023" (PDF) (in Spanish). Retrieved August 13, 2023.
  8. ^ "Guanajuato". 2010. Archived from the original on April 20, 2011. Retrieved November 5, 2010.
  9. ^ "Reporte: Jueves 3 de Junio del 2010. Cierre del peso mexicano". www.pesomexicano.com.mx. Archived from the original on June 8, 2010. Retrieved August 10, 2010.
  10. ^ "Guanajuato". Enciclopedia de los Municipios de México (in Spanish). Mexico: Instituto Nacional para el Federalismo y el Desarrollo Municipal. 2005. Archived from the original on July 18, 2011. Retrieved November 15,2010.
  11. ^ Lathrop, Maxwell (2007). Vocabulario del Idioma Purépecha (in Spanish). Retrieved 9 May 2020.