Aguascalientes

Aguascalientes ( ˈaɣwaskaˈljentes ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Aguascalientes (Spanish: Estado Libre y Soberano de Aguascalientes, literally: Hot Waters), is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 11 municipalities and its capital city is Aguascalientes.

It is located in North-Central Mexico. It is bordered by the states of Zacatecas to the north and Jalisco to the south. Its name means "hot waters" in Spanish and originated from the abundance of hot springs in the area. The corresponding demonym for the state and its inhabitants is hidrocálido or aguascalentense.

Geography

The state is located about 480 km (300 mi) from Mexico City.

It covers 5,471 square kilometers (2,112 sq mi) and has a little more than one million inhabitants. Most of its inhabitants live in the densely populated metropolitan area of its capital city.

The state as it is now was created on October 27, 1857 when it was separated from Zacatecas after the tale says that the wife of the governor of the state promised to give a kiss to the President of the time, in exchange for the separation of Aguascalientes from Zacatecas, which explains the shape of a kiss the state has. It bears the name Aguascalientes taken from its largest city and capital also called Aguascalientes.

Aguascalientes City

Aguascalientes (Spanish pronunciation: [aɣwaskaˈljentes]) is the capital of the state of Aguascalientes and is its most populous city, with a metropolitan population of 1,000,000. It is located in North-Central Mexico. It is part of the macroregion of Bajío, which is among the safest regions in Mexico. Aguascalientes has repeatedly been recognized as one of the cities with the best quality of life in Latin America. Nowadays, Aguascalientes is a vigorous service city that is experiencing an ongoing social, economic, and aesthetic revitalization process.

It stands on the banks of the Río Aguascalientes, 1880 meters above sea level, at 21°51′N 102°18′W / 21.850°N 102.300°W / 21.850; -102.300. It is the municipal seat for the Aguascalientes Municipality.The Aguascalientes metropolitan area includes the municipality of Jesus María y San Francisco de los Romo. It was a Chichimeca Indian territory. It later blossomed as a strategic link between Mexico City and the mines of Zacatecas, while prosperous agriculture and ranching helped feed Spain’s emerging New World cities.

Aguascalientes Municipality

Aguascalientes is a municipality of the Mexican state of Aguascalientes. Its municipal seat is the city of Aguascalientes, which is also the state capital. As of 2010, its population was 797,010, most of whom lived in the city of Aguascalientes.

Geography

Aguascalientes is in the south of the valley that divides the state in two and borders the municipalities of El Llano, Jesús María, Calvillo, Asientos, and San Francisco de los Romo in the state, as well as the state of Jalisco to the south. Its area is 1,169 km².

Demographics

As of 2010, the municipality had a total population of 797,010,

As of 2010, the city of Aguascalientes had a population of 722,250. Other than the city of Aguascalientes, the municipality had 799 localities, the largest of which (with 2010 populations in parentheses) were: Pocitos (5,169), Villa Licenciado Jesús Terán (Calvillito) (4,481), Norias de Ojocaliente (3,741), Norias del Paso Hondo (2,539), General José María Morelos y Pavón (Cañada Honda) (2,500), classified as urban, and Cartagena (2,496), Jaltomate (2,299), San Antonio de Peñuelas (2,147), San Sebastián (1,862), Peñuelas (El Cienegal) (1,670), El Refugio de Peñuelas (1,624), Montoro (Mesa del Salto) (1,574), La Loma de los Negritos (1,519), El Salto de los Salado (1,436), Arellano (1,382), San Ignacio (1,360), Cumbres III (1,337), Cotorina (Coyotes) (1,298), Lomas del Sur (1,207), Los Caños (1,150), and Centro de Arriba (El Taray) (1,064), classified as rural.