San Cristóbal de las Casas

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State	Chiapas
San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas

Nickname: ""Jovel" or "Hueyzacatlán""
Chiapas, in brown; San Cristóbal de las Casas, in red
Government
- Presidente municipal	Sergio Lobato García
Area
- City	484.00 km² (186.87 sq mi)
- Urban	484.00 km² (186.9 sq mi)
Population (2005 census)
- City	142,364 city; 166,460 municipality
Time zone	CST (UTC-6)
Website: http://www.sancristobalya.com/

San Cristóbal de las Casas is a municipality (municipio) and city in the central highlands of the state of Chiapas, Mexico. It is located in the Highlands of Chiapas at 16.75° N 92.63° W, at an elevation of approximately 2100 m (6890 ft) above mean sea level. The city was named after Bartolomé de Las Casas, a Spanish priest who defended the rights of the Native Americans and was the first bishop of Chiapas. In the 2005 census the city's population was 142,364 people, whereas the municipality's total was 166,460. It is the third-largest community in Chiapas, after Tuxtla Gutiérrez and Tapachula. The municipality's area is 484.00 km² (186.87 sq mi).

1 History
- 1.1 Settlement and name
- 1.2 Zapatista Conflict
2 Demographics
- 2.1 Religion
3 Natural Environment
4 Gallery
5 References
6 External links

[edit] History

[edit] Settlement and name

For thousands of years, Maya peoples, ancestral to the present-day Tzotzil and Tzeltal peoples, have continuously lived in settlements in the general area of the modern city of San Cristobal.

In 1528, the Spanish conquistador, Diego de Mazariegos established the settlement of "Villareal de Chiapa de los Españoles" as a regional base after defeating the Zoques and Chiapanecos in fierce fighting. The settlement became the capital of the province of Chiapas. On March 1, 1535, the Spanish crown bestowed the settlement with un escudo de armas and renamed the city, "San Cristóbal de los Llanos" after its patron saint, St. Christopher. The settlement was given the title of city on July 7, 1536, and once again renamed to "Ciudad Real de Chiapa". By 1577, the city selected don Juan de Meza as its first mayor.

The city's name underwent frequent modifications. On July 27, 1829 the city became "Ciudad de San Cristóbal" and it was on May 31, 1848 that they city became know as "San Cristóbal de Las Casas", in honor of Bartolomé de Las Casas. On February 13, 1934, the city became "Ciudad Las Casas", but this was officially revereted back to "San Cristóbal de Las Casas" on November 4, 1943 by Dr. Rafael Pascacio Gamboa. Despite the various name changes that the city has undergone, the local people continue to call the city by its traditional name, Jovel. (During the colonial period, the city was also known as "el Mote de la Chiapa de los Españoles" and until a few decades ago, it was also known as "Hueyzacatlán".) The chiapanecos also refer to the city as "Sancris".

[edit] Zapatista Conflict

San Cristobal was one of the four cities that the Zapatista Army of National Liberation took in its uprising in January of 1994. While many upper-class people in San Cristobal, who consider themselves traditionally rooted here (called "Coletos") are very much against the Zapatistas, there are also parts of the population (poor, indigenous people, civil society) that sympathize or openly cooperate with the Zapatista movement. Many tourists are interested in the Zapatista movement. In 2006, the latest political initiative of the Zapatistas, the "Other Campaign" started from San Cristobal at the beginning of the year. The Zapatistas are also omnipresent in the tourist markets (e.g. dolls, posters, t-shirts) in the city.

[edit] Demographics

San Cristobal is estimated to have about 200.000 inhabitants. This number has been increasing steadily in the past years, since many rural people have been displaced by the armed conflict in 1994 and the subsequent war of low intensity of the Mexican government. The city is located near the Tzotzil Maya communities of Chamula, and Zinacantán, and a half-day bus ride from the Classic Maya ruins of Palenque, and is therefore a popular base of operations for tourists from all over the world looking to experience ancient and modern Maya culture.

[edit] Religion

The city had nearly 300 Muslims in 2000, but there is still a catholic majority. Like many isolated areas with high indigenous populations, the Catholic faith is often mixed with many native beliefs. There are also many different protestant churches.

[edit] Natural Environment

gravel bank in the mountains around San Cristobal

Surrounding San Cristobal and even within the city there are several typical mountain wetlands. They are home to an endemic fish (Profundulus hildebrandi), commonly known as "popoyote" which only lives in the valley of San Cristobal. The rivers are heavily contaminated. The valley of San Cristobal is surrounded by several mountains. To the west, the Huitepec (about 2700m) is home to the Santa Anita holy site, where a Jesus appeared on a rock, and to a natural reserve with cloud forests. To the east, the Cerro de la Santa Cruz is home to a church where on May 3rd of every year a procession takes place. To the north, the Moxviquil has a prehispanic archaeological site. The mountains around San Cristobal are heavily exploited for gravel.

Along with a lack of urban planning and encroachment of the forested hills by migrants, this has lead to an elevated danger of floods in the lower-lying areas of San Cristobal. The valley of San Cristobal does not have a natural opening towards the Central Depression of Chiapas. The water used to disappear in a lake at the lowest point of the valley in the southern part of the city. In the 70s a tunnel was built which now evacuates the water.