State of Morelos
Xochitepec is a municipio (municipality) of the state of Morelos, in central Mexico. Xochitepec is also the name of its principal township and seat of the municipal government. It is located approximately 13 km (8.1 mi) to the south of the capital of Morelos, Cuernavaca, on the southern outskirts of that city's greater metropolitan area.[1]
The municipality reported 68,984 inhabitants in the year 2015[2] census. 1.65% of the population speak an indigenous language.
The toponym Xochitepec [ʃot͡ʃiˈtepek] comes from the Nahuatl language, meaning "on the hill of flowers". The name may refer to a buried pyramid located at Kilometer 92 along the Mexico City-Acapulco highway, or it could refer to a hill in the center of the city that serves as the pedestal for a public clock.[1]
Excavations in Zazacatla show the area was inhabited between 800-500 BCE. Xochicalco was inhabited from A.D. 200, with its peak from A.D. 700-900. Tlahuica settlements date from the 14th century.
Spanish evangelization began in the 16th century, including the construction of the monastery of San Juan Bautista (St. John the Baptist) and the Hacienda of Santa Catarina in Chiconcuac. Villa Señor y Sánchez reports in 1746 that Xochitepec had 35 indigenous families and 16 Spanish families.[3] Churches were also built in Atlacholoaya and Alpuyeca.
During the 18th century the hacienda of Temixco seized lands that belonged to Xochitepec.[1]
At this time, Xochitepec was part of the province of Mexico City.
A strong earthquake in 1847 opened a sulfurous spring in San Ramon, Chiconcuac, in 1847. The site is a water park today.[1]
In 1848, indigenous from Xochitepec were sentenced to garrote vil (a type of torture and execution) for rebelling against Hacienda Chiconcuac over a land dispute. Soldiers of Alvarez (Los Pintos) assaulted the Hacienda of Chiconcuac in 1856.[1]
Xochitepec was taken over by Republican forces in 1863.
Following Madero's call to arms in 1910, followers of Manuel Asúnsolo advanced on Xochitepec and Cuernavaca in 1911. In retaliation for Zapata's 1913 manifestation calling Victoriano Huerta an usurper, General Robles burned Xochitepec and other towns in Morelos.[1]
In 1967, Claudia Ochoa Carrillo was the first woman elected Presidente Municipal (mayor) in Morelos.[1]
Alberto Sánchez Ortega (PRI) was elected Presidente Municipal in 2018.[4][5]
On March 27, 2019, former Atlacholoaya municipal police officer Juan Carlos Reyes Lara was found guilty of the kidnapping of the teacher Albino Quiroz Sandoval. Quiroz Sandoval, 70, was last seen in Tepoztlan on March 16, 2017.[6]
As of May 4, 2020, there were 505 infections and 59 deaths in the state of Morelos and four confirmed infections from the COVID-19 pandemic in Xochitepec.[7] Schools and many businesses were closed from mid March until June 1.[8] On July 2, Xochitepec reported 36 infections and five deaths from the virus; the reopening of the state was pushed back until at least June 13.[9] Xochitepec reported 151 cases, 106 recuperations, and 31 deaths from the virus as of August 31.[10] Two hundred and forty-two cases were reported on December 27, 2020.[11]
Spanish: Communities of Xochitepec (retrieved Dec 10, 2018)
There are 63,382 residents in Xochitepec. with a female/male ratio of 0.971. Women have a fertility rate of 2.39, 30,97% of the residents were born outside the state of Morelos. 3.01% of the population identify as Indigenous and 1.65% speak an Indigenous language. There is a literacy rate of 92.72%, and the average educational level is 8.02 years. 77.70% of the men and 35.91% of the women are economically active. 77.38% of the population is Roman Catholic, 13,19% Protestant or Evangelical, 0.16% other, and 7.15% have no religion.[13]
Xochitepec boasts a weekend handicrafts market in its Zocolo the Centro Cultural Xochitepequense with a library, historical archive, and workshops sponsored by INAH; the "Magic Town" of Chiconcuac; hotels including a 4-star hotel in Puente; the Parque Científico y Tecnológico del Estado de Morelos (Scientific and Technological Park of the State of Morelos); the Mariano Matamoros Sports Center; and two waterparks.[12]
Centro Cultural Xochitepequense houses the Doctor Emeterio González Museo del Campesino (Peasant Museum). There are 500 objects on exhibit, including a meteorite, archaeological pieces, and agricultural tools in two exhibition halls.
Cuisine includes white pork pozole, Barbacoa de Chivo (barbecued goat), Fish tamales, Spicy mole (from Atlacholoaya), and fruit-flavored ice cream from Alpuyeca.[1]
Atlacholoaya has a wind instrument band.
Xochicalco is the most important archaeological site in Morelos.[14] The main ceremonial center is atop an artificially leveled hill, with remains of residential structures, mostly unexcavated, on long terraces covering the slopes. The site was first occupied by 200 BC but did not develop into an urban center until the Epiclassic period (AD 700 – 900). In addition to pyramids, there are three ballparks, an observatory, and a temazcal (ritual steam bath). At its peak, the city may have had a population of up to 20,000 people. The site is located in the municipalities of Temixco and Xochitepec and includes a museum with six exhibit halls.
In June 2006 a research team from Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) began excavations at Zazacatla, a pre-Columbian Mesoamerican archaeological site located within the municipal boundaries. The INAH team led by Giselle Canto reported finding evidence of Olmec cultural influences at the site. Prior to the find Olmec-influenced statuary and architecture had been almost completely unknown for other sites in the western Morelos region, and Zazacatla's excavation represents the strongest evidence yet for some form of trade or contact between the area and the "Olmec heartland" in the Gulf Coast region, some 400 km (249 mi) to the east.[15]
In January 2007 the governor of Morelos, Marco Adame Castillo, announced an offer for the state to underwrite the preservation of Zazacatla and to incorporate it into the tourism and cultural heritage plans for Morelos. He foreshadowed that a tourism project would be initiated at the site's location in Xochitepec once the archaeological investigations had further developed.[16][17]
The state penitentiary is located in Atlacholoaya, Xochitepec. Designed for 1,900 inmates, it has a population of 2,487.[18] The Telemundo TV series Enemigo íntimo, was filmed there in 2018.[19]
