Complex sentence: The name "Tlaxcala" pre-dates the state by centuries; it derives from the name of the capital city, which was also used to denote the territory controlled by this city in pre-Hispanic times.
Split into simpler sentences: The name "Tlaxcala" pre-dates the state by centuries. It is based on the name of the capital city, which was also used to denote the territory controlled by this city in pre-Hispanic times.