Talk:Mexico/Old version

[[es:M%E9xico]]fr:Mexique eo:Meksikio México is a country located in North America, bordered to the north by the United States to the south by Guatemala and Belize, to the west by the Pacific Ocean and to the east by the Gulf of México and the Caribbean Sea.
Its capital is México City that has the status of Federal District in which the three parts of the Federal goverment are located. Important cities include Monterrey, Guadalajara, Puebla, Veracruz, Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl, Ciudad Juarez, Tijuana, Merida, Oaxaca.
México is divided into 31 states and 1 Federal District (Distrito Federal), the goverment is organized as a Democratic Federal Republic with division of powers (executive power, held by the president of the republic; legislative power, represented by the congress and the judiciary power).

Official name: "Estados Unidos Méxicanos" (United Mexican States or United States of Mexico).
Languages: Spanish, Nahuatl, Mayan, Zapotecan, Lacandon, Tharahumara, Seri, Yaqui and many others
Currency: Peso, divided in 100 centavos.
Current president: Vicente Fox Quezada (2000).

Divisions of México

Federal District

Ciudad de México, Distrito Federal

Estados (States):

Aguascalientes
- Pronunciation: AH - guahs - kah - lee- EN - teece (the "g" is pronounced softly, but like g, not j)
- Origin of Name: Named after its capital city
- Capital: Aguascalientes
- Origin of Capital Name: Spanish for "Hot Waters" because of natural hot springs
Baja California (Norte)
- Pronunciation: BAH - hah - kah- lee - FOR - nyah
- Origin of Name: Spanish meaning "Lower California"
- Capital: Mexicali
- Origin of Capital Name:
Baja California Sur
- Pronunciation: BAH - hah - kahl - ee- FOR - nyah - SUR
- Origin of Name: Spanish meaning "South Lower California"
- Capital: La Paz
- Origin of Capital Name: Spanish for "The Peace"
Campeche
- Pronunciation: kahm - PECH - eh
- Origin of Name: After the ancient pre-Columbian state of Kimpech
- Capital: Campeche
- Origin of Capital Name: Same as name of state
Chiapas
- Pronunciation: chee - AH - pahs
- Origin of Name:
- Capital: Tuxtla Gutiérrez
- Also simply called "Tuxtla"
- Origin of Capital Name:
Chihuahua
- Pronunciation: chee - WAH - wah
- Origin of Name: From the name of the capital
- Capital: Chihuahua
- Origin of Capital Name:
Coahuila
- Pronunciation: kwah WEE lah
- Origin of Name:
- Capital: Saltillo
- Origin of Capital Name: Spanish for "Little Jump"; may be a diminutive of Salta in Argentina
Colima
- Colima is a very small state on the Pacific coast
- Pronunciation: koh LEE mah
- Origin of Name:
- Capital: Colima
- Origin of Capital Name:
Durango: Durango
- Pronunciation: dooh RONG goh
- Origin of Name: Named after its capital city
- Capital: Durango
- Also called Victoria de Durango
- Origin of Capital Name:
Guanajuato
- Pronunciation: gwan ah WAH toh
- Origin of Name: After the capital city
- Capital: Guanajuato
- Origin of Capital Name: After the Guanajuato people, a group of Native Americans
Guerrero
- Pronunciation: gheh RERR o (the first rr is strongly trilled, the second r, clicked)
- Origin of Name: After Vicente Guerrero, a Mexican revolutionary hero
- Capital: Chilpancingo
- Origin of Capital Name:
Hidalgo
- Pronunciation: ee DAHL go
- Origin of Name: Spanish for "Noble"
- Capital: Pachuca
- Origin of Capital Name:
Jalisco
- Pronunciation: hall EES koh
- Origin of Name:
- Capital: Guadalajara
- Origin of Capital Name: After the Spanish city of the same name, in turn named from the Arabic "Wad al Hadjarah," meaning "River of Stones"
México (Estado de)
- Pronunciation: MEH hee koh
- Origin of Name: After the Mehika Aztecs who lived at Tenochtitlan
- Capital: Toluca
- Origin of Capital Name:
Michoacán
- Pronunciation: mee choh wah KAHN
- Origin of Name:
- Capital: Morelia
- Origin of Capital Name: After José María Morelos y Pavón, hero of the Mexican Revolution; previously called Valladolid
Morelos
- Pronunciation: moh - RAY - loce
- Origin of Name: After José María Morelos y Pavón, hero of the Mexican Revolution
- Capital: Cuernavaca
- Origin of Capital Name:
Nayarit
- Formerly the territory of Tepic; Nayarit since 1917
- Pronunciation: nah - YAR - eet
- Origin of Name:
- Capital: Tepic
- Origin of Capital Name:
- Includes the Pacific Ocean Tres Marís islands
Nuevo Leon
- Pronunciation: NWAY - voh - leh - OHN
- Origin of Name: After the Leon province of Spain, literally meaning "New Lion"
- Capital: Monterrey
- Origin of Capital Name:
Oaxaca
- Pronunciation: wah HAW kah
- Origin of Name:
- Capital: Oaxaca
- Origin of Capital Name:
Puebla
- Pronunciation: PWAY blah
- Origin of Name: People
- Capital: Puebla
- Origin of Capital Name: Same as the state
Querétaro
- Pronunciation: keh - RET - ah - roh
- Origin of Name: Named after its capital city
- Capital: : Querétaro
- Origin of Capital Name: The city was already ancient at the time of #*Cristobal Colombo; meaning is uncertain
Quintana Roo
- Pronunciation: keen - TAH - nah - ROH (the r is clicked)
- Origin of Name: ?Conjecture: After Manuel José Quintana, Spanish poet (1772-1857)
- Capital: Chetumal
- Origin of Capital Name:
San Luis Potosí
- Pronunciation: sahn - loo - EES - poh - toh - SEE (the u in Luis is very short)
- Origin of Name: From the name of the capital city
- Capital: San Luis Potosí
- Origin of Capital Name: After the old Spanish mission founded at this location, San Luis Rey (Saint Louis the King), and after a nearby hill, Cerro de Potosí (Hill of Potosí), famed for its silver mines, which in turn is named after the Potosí area of Bolivia (then part of Perú), which also was a mining district of reknown.
Sinaloa
- Pronunciation: SEE - nah - loh - ah
- Origin of Name:
- Capital: Culiacán
- Origin of Capital Name:
Sonora
- Pronunciation: soh - NOH - rah
- Origin of Name: After a native marble which can be used to make chimes, producing a true ring; thus, "Sonora" means "sonorous"
- Capital: Hermosillo
- Origin of Capital Name: Spanish for "Little Beautiful [handsome] One"
Tabasco
- Pronunciation: tah - BAHS - koh
- Origin of Name: From the Tabasco River (Río Tabasco), now called the Río Grijalvo
- Capital: Villahermosa
- Origin of Capital Name: Spanish for "Beautiful Village"
Tamaulipas
- Pronunciation: tah - mah - oo - LEE - pahs
- Origin of Name:
- Capital: Ciudad Victoria
- Origin of Capital Name: Spanish for "Victoria City"
Tlaxcala
- Pronunciation:
- Origin of Name: From the ancient Aztec province of Tlaxcala, largely comprising the same area
- Capital:Tlaxcala
- Origin of Capital Name: Same as the estado name
Veracruz
- Pronunciation: BEHR - ah - krooce
- Origin of Name: Spanish for "True Cross"
- Capital: Jalapa
- Also called Jalapa Enríquez
- Origin of Capital Name:
Yucatán
- Pronunciation: yoo- kah - TAHN
- Origin of Name: Native American language meaning "What did you say?" The (apocryphal) story goes that when the Spaniards first waded ashore on the Yucatán Peninsula, they asked the Native Americans watching, "What is this place?" The Native Americans, not understanding Spanish, asked "What did you say?" The Spanish, in their arrogance, assumed that anyone would understand their meaning, and took it to be the name.
- Capital: Mérida
- Origin of Capital Name: Named after the Spanish town of the same name, originally (in Latin) Augusta Emerita
Zacatecas
- Pronunciation: sah - kah - THE - kahs
- Origin of Name: Named after its capital city
- Capital: Zacatecas
- Origin of Capital Name: After the native Zacatec Indians, who in turn apparently took their name from the native Zacate grass

Mexico is also the name of some places in the United States of America: