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Veracruz

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For other uses, see Veracruz (disambiguation).

Veracruz

Flag

Location within Mexico

Country

Mexico

Capital

Government

- Governor

Fidel Herrera Beltrán (PRI)

- Federal Deputies

PRI: 6
PAN: 11
PRD: 2
Convergencia: 2

- Federal Senators

PRD: 1
PAN: 1
Convergencia: 1

Area
Ranked 11th

- Total

71,699 km² (27,683.1 sq mi)

Population (2005)

- Total

7,110,214 (Ranked 3rd)

HDI (2004)

0.7457 - medium
Ranked 28th

ISO 3166-2

MX-VER

Postal abbr.

Ver.

The state of Veracruz formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave is one of the 31 states that constitute Mexico.

1 Location
2 History
3 Vegetation
4 Economy
5 Tourism
6 Spanish
7 Municipalities
8 Major communities
9 Climate
10 References
11 External links

It is located in the east central part of the Gulf of Mexico country, between 17°10' and 22°38' North and between 93°55' and 98°38' West. It has a mainland area of 72,815 square kilometers (28,114 sq mi) and includes several islands in the Gulf of Mexico totalling another 58 square kilometers (22.4 sq mi).

Veracruz borders the states of Tamaulipas to the north, Oaxaca and Chiapas to the south, Tabasco to the southeast, Puebla, Hidalgo, and San Luis Potosi to the west, and the Gulf of Mexico to the east.

On the coastal plains and throughout most of the state, the climate is hot and humid. On the foothills of the mountains, the climate is cool and humid. The climate only becomes cold in the mountain regions, where it also rains copiously. Veracruz is occasionally affected by hurricanes from June to October.

This state has a tropical climate and impressive natural scenery, such as the Citlatapetl Volcano, or Pico de Orizaba, the highest peak in the nation. You’ll also see picturesque cities and towns that have preserved their local architecture. Along the coast you can visit the Costa Esmeralda, a 50 kilometers (31 mi) beach strip north of the port, and the archaeological zone of El Tajin, which also was declared an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Its capital is Xalapa, located in the central western part of the state. With more than 7 million inhabitants, the state of Veracruz is the third most populous in the nation, after the Federal District and the State of Mexico.

In April 1518, Juan de Grijalva disembarked on an islet near the shore that was called San Juan de Ulúa. On April 22, 1519 Hernan Cortez disembarked on Chalchihuecan beach, where he decided to found a village and form the first colonial settlement in Mexico. That day was Good Friday, the day of Holy Week known as the day of La Vera Cruz (True Cross) — hence he chose the name of La Villa Rica de la Vera Cruz.

It was from this base in August 1519 that Cortez began his course of conquest inland to Tenochtitlan, Mexico, while his subsidiary conquistador commanders pacified other regions that today shape the entity of Veracruz.

From this beginning, Veracruz as the entry point for conquest, became the principal point of communication and harbor between Spain and New Spain. From this port were shipped many products to Europe like cotton, rice, wheat, domestic animals, gun powder, textiles, wine and all the considerable produce from this rich colony and particular territory.

Despite its relative importance as the oldest established state in post-Columbian Mexico, having the third largest population in Mexico (after Mexico state and the Federal District), and being the origin, processing, and transport hub for much of the country's oil reserves, Veracruz is one of the poorest states in the country.^{[citation needed]} Relative to the industrious northern and central states, Veracruz has few job opportunities for the educated middle class. This is specially true outside of the small Veracruz-Boca del Rio and Coatzacalcos areas. While quality basic education through the high school level is provided by the state, the main university lacks experienced faculty (very few have doctorate or postgraduate degrees), and has almost no research infrastructure. Young capable professionals usually migrate to out-of-state industrial hubs such as Mexico City, Toluca, or Monterrey, to find jobs.^{[citation needed]}

In pre-Hispanic era, Isla de Sacrificios (Sacrifice Island), was inhabited by the Totonacs and the Olmecs, and was named Chalchihuitlapazco. It was discovered in 1518 by Juan de Grijalva, during the exploration of the Gulf of Mexico. One of the largest islands around Boca del Río, this site is surrounded by a coral reef.

La Antigua was the second settlement after "La Villa Rica de la Veracruz". It is located 25 kilometers from Veracruz City. It features the house of Hernan Cortez. It is a small town that holds the oldest still-standing Catholic chapel built in the American continent.

Papantla was founded by Totonacs. It is located 198 meters above sea level between the Cazones and Tecolutla rivers.^[1]

Spanish is the dominant language in Veracruz, although sometimes people know English.

The state of Veracruz is subdivided into 212 municipalities (municipios). See municipalities of Veracruz.

Climate chart for Veracruz
J	F	M	A	M	J	J	A	S	O	N	D
43 26 19	18 28 19	17 30 21	19 32 23	48 33 25	263 32 25	347 32 24	359 32 24	436 32 24	183 30 23	96 29 22	67 27 20
temperatures in °C • precipitation totals in mm source: [1]