Aguascalientes, Mexico

Aguascalientes is one of the 32 states of Mexico. It’s name means “hot springs” and was created after discovery of the bountiful amount of the area’s natural hot springs. The location of Aguascalientes is highly beneficial to it, because it is right in the middle of three densely populated areas, most importantly Monterrey, Mexico City, and Guadalajara. It is approximately 2,169.4 square miles and has a population of about 1.4 million people. There are 11 different municipalities that are located in Aguascalientes. The landscape includes some mountain ranges and deserts. There is a semi-arid climate, with temperatures ranging from 50º Fahrenheit to 70º Fahrenheit. According to the 2010 census, over 90% of the population’s religion is Roman Chatholic, while 4.4% identify as some other type of Christian, and 1.8% resonates with no religion. The majority of the population is between the ages of 15-26 years old. Mexicans are the major ethnic group, making up 98.7% of the population, while Americans make up 0.7%. Spanish is the official language of Aguascalientes.

**History**

Before the area of Aguascalientes was colonized, it was populated by the Chichimecas. The Chichimecas were a group of nomadic and semi-nomadic people that lived in what is now called the Bajìo region of modern day Mexico.  In the 1530s, they were colonized by Pedro Almìndez Chirino. Aguascalientes was founded by the order the King Felipe II gave to Don Geronimo de Orozco, who was the President of the Royal Audience as well as the Governor of Nueva Galicia. This order said that he should find a rich guy to settle in the territory with the intention of getting rid of the Chichimecas. By following this order, Geronimo de Orozco found someone named Juan de Montoro, who lived in the city of Santa Maria. He founded the town on October 22, 1575; naming it San Marcos. The name was changed to Villa of Our Lady of the Assumption of Aguas Calientes on August 18, 161. It was officially changed to Aguascalientes on June 2, 1875.

Aguascalientes became dependant on Zacatecas on April 24, 1789. On December 10, 1865, the state of Aguascalientes was established. This came after many different attempts to separate Aguascalientes from Zacatecas. During the War of Reform, which was a three year civil war (1857-1860) that happened between the Liberal Party and the Conservative Party, there were many hidrocalidos like Jesus R. Macias, Manuel Rangel, Augustin Orona, Jose Maria Arellano, and many more that made their mark during the war. Roman Morales, Alfonso Guerreo, Silvestre Dorador, Pedro Vital, and Alberto Fuentes Davila were important figures in the Revolution. Due to the rebel movement that was in the town and in the region, it was able to stay together.

**Economy**

Aguascalientes main focus of industry used to be silver mining and railroad transportation. This was because of their location between three large populated cities. They also used to supply large amounts of wine and grapes. This ended because the Spanish Royalty of the time wanted all of the wine and grapes to be made in Spain. Today, they are known for their car industry, that is still continuously growing. There is currently two Nissian factories that make more than half a million cars in a year! They plan to add more to their car production like another Nissan Assembly plant and a Toyota Assembly plant. There is also many projects in the name of economic development that they are doing. Things like a monorail, suburban train, Executive Hotels, theme parks, four plus malls, eight bridges, and so much more. They also plan to build a Texas Instruments Assembly-Test plant.

This is the third most competitive state that has more than 12 million dollars in foreign direct investment (FDI) which is about eight percent of Mexico’s FDI). While Aguascalientes has benefited from this a lot, they have also been benefiting from a lot more tourism. This is because it has began to be known for its cleanliness as well as how beautiful it is. It is an area that is full of history as well as nice recreational activities. Some of their most prominent attractions are the San Marcos Fair (the national fair of Mexico), the colonial architecture in the capital city, many conventions, The National Protected Reserves in the Sierra Fria mountains, and its relaxing environment. Many people also go to the capitol, mining town, haciendas, baths, and hot springs.