San Pedro Pochutla

**San Pedro Pochutla** is a ceety an municipality locatit in the sooth o Oaxaca state, Mexico next tae the Paceefic Ocean.
It is a important commercial, transportation an admeenistrative hub for the Pochutla Destrict in the east o the Costa Region.  Pochutla is locatit at the junction o coastal Heich-gate 200 an Heich-gate 175 tae Oaxaca, wi 175 functionin as the toun’s main thoroufare. Its name means "place o kapok trees (Ceiba pentandra)", an maist o the ceety is biggit on a lochbed which wis drained durin the colonial period.  The municipality is best kent as bein the hame o the oceanside commonties o Puerto Ángel an Zipolite.

## History
The Pochutla aurie wis settled bi Zapotec tribes frae Amatlán, Miahuatlán an Cuatlan in the 8t hunderyear.  The dounset nou kent as Pochutla wis foondit aroond the same time as nearbi Loxicha, Cozoaltepec an ithers. The aurie wis pairt o the dominion o Tututepec.
At the time o the Spainyie conquest, the Spainyie toun o Pochutla wis foondit bi Pedro Molina, Isidro Salinas, Julio Diaz an ithers, initially wi the name o Huehuetan. The locals war convertit tae Christianity an the first kirk wis foondit juist sooth o the modren toun an cried San Pedro Huehuetán Laguna. Hintle o the modren ceety is biggit on wha wis a lochbed. Acause o illnesses sic as malaria an yellae fever, this loch wis drained. Later in the colonial period, the name wis chyngit tae Pochutla due tae the nummer o kapok trees in the aurie.

Accordin tae tradeetion an aircheological evidence locatit in the hills o Vigía, Espino an El Cometa, thare wur airms hidden here bi pirates, who wur cried Pichilingües.

In 1833, Conservative rebels led bi General Valentín Canalizo fled throu here as thay wur pursued bi govrenment troops. Thair last battle wis at the nearbi Soledad Ranch in which thay wur destroyed bi federal forces, forcin the remainin sodgers tae scatter.

Conservative rebels continued tae be active in this region till the 1860s wi José Eustaquio Manzano an Apolonio Manzano leadin the rebel cause, reinvigoratit due tae the passage o the Reshape Laws. In 1858 an 1859, federal forces wur dispatched here tae subdue the rebels who haed taken tae guerrilla warfare. The last battle atween the Manzano brithers an federal troops teuk place in 1860, wi the brithers captured an taken tae the state caipital in 1861.
The municipality haes a petroleum reserve cried Aragón, five km frae the commonty o Puerto Angel. The deposit wis goin tae be exploitit bi a Inglis company, who brocht ower equipment in 1937, but expropriation o ile in 1938 bi Preses Lázaro Cárdenas brocht this tae a halt. It haes yet tae be tappit.

Till late in the 20t hunderyear, hintle o the population o the aurie livit on subsistence fermin, wi the anerly wirk available durin the hairst saison on the coffee plantations. In the 1970, the state govrenment expropriated maist o the coastal laund frae Zipolite tae Zapotengo an made it ejido or communal laund wi the aim o development.
Durin the 2006 teachers strike in the state o Oaxaca, groups supportin an opposin the strike clashed here on the main road, Heich-gate 175. The heich-gate wis blockit bi those supportin the strike tae prevent those opposin it frae realizin thair “Mairch for Eddication.”  The heich-gate wis blockit wi busses an caurs preventin those boond for the state caipital frae leavin.

Ither recent strikes include those bi taxi drivers an ithers in transportation who hae blockit roads resultin in monetary losses for the municipality. The dispute centred on concessions for passenger transportation atween Pochutla an beach commonties sic as Zipolite. Actions bi strikers hae includit the blockage o roads includin coastal Heich-gate 200.

## The ceety

The ceety is the commercial, transportation an admeenistrative centere for the aurie. It conteens banks, supermerecats an specialty stores that serve the coastal an isolatit muntain commonties o the Sierra Madre de Oaxaca which generally lack thir things. The ceety is on the crossroads o Heich-gate 175, which connects Oaxaca ceety wi Puerto Angel an coastal Heich-gate 200 that connects commonties sic as Puerto Angel, Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca, Huatulco an Salina Cruz.  It is a transportation hub filled wi buses, taxis an dust. Taxis cried “colectivos” (collectives) go tae the aurie’s beaches as well as pickup larries fittit tae cairy passengers. Thare are twa bus stations wi first an seicont cless buses tae Oaxaca ceety, Mexico Ceety an Huatulco.

It is no a tourist attraction but it serves tourists as a place for bankin services an supplees no available in the beach commonties as well as a transfer pynt for buses.
In the forenicht, the main road throu toun haes a variety o street fuid. The pairish kirk wis begun in 1840 but wis no feenished till 1957. The municipal palace wis biggit in 1873.  The centre, especially the main plaza an the municipal palace, haes recently been renovatit an a new amphitheatre haes been biggit tae host cultural an sportin events. The patron saunt’s day is 29 Juin in which fowk celebrate wi masks, an firewirks, some set in frames cried “castles.”

Pochutla gained the title o ceety in Mairch 2003.
It is the seat o the Pochutla Destrict, an is the heid o the Pairish o Pochutla which owersees 39 ither commonties an aw.

## The municipality

As municipal seat, the ceety o San Pedro Pochutla is the govrenin authority ower 238 ither namit commonties, wi a tot aurie o 421km2. This municipality haes a tot population o 38,798 o wi 12,117 live in the ceety proper.  The maist important commonties ither than the seat include Puerto Angel an Zipolite, baith o which are oceanside commonties. Zipolite is a popular tourist attraction an Puerto Angel wis a coffee export port whose economy nou is based on tourism an fishin. Ither beaches include La Mina, whaur waves crash noisily against rocks an Zapotengo wi haes miles o coconut groves next tae the sand. Thare is a fresh watter spring in San José Chacalapa an aw. The municipality borders Candelaria Loxicha, Pluma Hidalgo, Santa María Huatulco, Cozoaltepec an Santo Domingo wi the Paceefic Ocean tae the sooth.

The climate here is het an humid due tae its proximity tae the ocean wi a rainy saison in the simmer. Average temperaturs vary atween 30 an 38C. The sooth o the municipality is oceanfront an the north is shapit bi muntains o the Sierra Madre de Oaxaca. Various rivers pass throu here on thair wey tae the Paceefic Ocean even mair arroyos fillin durin the simmer rainy saison. Maist o the rain faws in the muntains auries o the municipality rather than on the coast. Principal elevations include Vigia an Espino frae which the main river flows. Despite the drainage o the principal loch, malaria is still a concern here. Vegetation is o the tropical an sub-tropical teeps an include a nummer o valuable tropical firth trees sic as huanacastle, mahogany, cedar an Guaiacum coulteri, which are primarily uised tae mak furnitur.  Common wildlife includes iguanas, deer, wild boar, armadillos, rabbits, raccoons an numerous birds native tae the aurie. Coastal species include black coral, turtles sea bass, shairks an crabs, wi bass, mojarra an shrimp foond in the rivers.

The principal cultivatit crop here is coffee, which provides maist o the employment o the landwart population. This is raised in the muntain auries. Seicont is the raisin o coconuts an products based on it sic as coconut ile.  Anither important crop is mangos. Ither crops grown include corn, sesame seed, peanuts, limes, plums, bananas, wattermelons an ither melons. Aboot 50% o the tot population is dedicatit tae commerce, especially that relatit tae tourism. Aboot 22% is dedicatit tae minin, petroleum, an industry.

A nummer o tradeetions are maintained, maistly in the landwart auries. In landwart commonties, various dialects o the Zapotec leid are still spoken. Crafts include figurs carvit frae coconuts, in the regional penitentiar are made necklaces an figurs frae black coral, firth an ither materials. Tradeetional dress till recently consistit o loose fittin white pants an shirts made o lichtwicht canvas but this haes maistly gien wey tae modren clothin especially in the ceety. Housomeivver, aulder weemen can still be seen in canvas blouses, rebozos, sandals an wearin lang braids. Local specialties include iguana tamales an venison in yellae or reid mole. Tradeetional muisic includes sangs cried “sones” an chilenas. Local “sones” include titles sic as El Perro, El Arriero, El Borracho, El Zopilote, El Toro an El Panadero. Dance garb for weemen includes lang, wide skirts an blouses in various bricht colors adorned wi ribbons an wi the blouses embroidered wi flouers. Accessories include rebozos, sandals an palm-leaf hats. The men wear white pants an shirts wi sandals an palm-leaf hats. A dance cried the “Kirio” is performit at weddins.

In Puerto Angel, the Universidad del Mar (Varsity o the Sea) wis foondit in 1991 bi Heladio Ramirez Lopez, govrenor o the state o Oaxaca.

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