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Hidalgo Estado Libre y Soberano de Hidalgo Free and Sovereign State of Hidalgo
—  State  —
Flag Coat of arms
Location within Mexico
Districts of Hidalgo
Country	Mexico
Capital	Pachuca
Municipalities	84
Government
- Governor	Miguel Ángel Osorio Chong (PRI)
- Federal Deputies	PRI:4 PRD:2 PAN:1
- Federal Senators	José Guadarrama (PRD) Francisco Berganza (C) Jesús Murillo (PRI)
Area Ranked 26th
- Total	20,813 km2 (8,035.9 sq mi)
Population (2005)
- Total	2,345,514 (Ranked 18th)
	Hidalguense
Time zone	CST (UTC-6)
- Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
HDI (2004)	0.7515 - medium Ranked 27th
ISO 3166-2	MX-HID
Postal abbr.	Hgo.
Website	Hidalgo State Government

Hidalgo (Spanish pronunciation: [iˈðalɣo]) is a state in central Mexico, bordered on the north by San Luis Potosí, on the east by Veracruz and Puebla, on the south by Tlaxcala and Mexico State, and on the northwest by Querétaro. The ancient Toltec ruins at Tula are located in Hidalgo. It is one of the Mexican states with a high concentration of people speaking an Mexican indigenous language. The state covers an area of 20,502 square kilometers (7,915.9 sq mi). In the 2005 census it reported a population of 2,345,514 hidalguense. It is named after Mexican independence leader Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla. The state capital is Pachuca.

History

The creation of the state after Mexican independence

A call to create a state in or around the area of modern-day Hidalgo was originally made in 1823, led by the representatives of Huejutla to the Constitutional Congress; the proposal, which would have established the state of Huasteca, failed.^[1] In 1851, a movement began for the creation of a state, to be called Iturbide, from the Huasteca regions of Tamaulipas, San Luis Potosí, Veracruz and state of México. The corresponding proposal, drafted by Manuel Fernando Soto (after whom Pachuca de Soto is named), was rejected by the 1857 Constitutional Congress.^[2] In 1861, a new plan, to constitute the new state out of parts of the state of México, was advocated by various local federal deputies. This effort was interrupted by the French Intervention; but it achieved success after the overthrow of the French and the restoration of the Republic. By this approach, Hidalgo was created as a state on 15 January 1869.^[2] Before deciding on Pachuca, serious consideration was given to Tulancingo as state capital.

Economy

The state is a traditional mining center, and the main products extracted from its soil are sulfur, zinc, and lead, followed by silver and gold, although the supply of these precious metals has been considerably depleted.

The largest portion of the Gross Domestic Product of Hidalgo is the services sector with 26.5%, followed by manufacturing, with 24%. The agricultural, forestry, and fishing industries, although they employ almost half of the economically active population in the state, account for just 6% of the GDP. The major crops and fish produced are alfalfa, maguey, sugar cane, barley grain, tuna, green bean, sherrycoffee, small pumpkin, carp, trout, and a small lake fish called charal.

Government and politics

The Constitution of the State of Hidalgo provides that the government of Hidalgo, like the government of every other state in Mexico, consists of three powers: the executive, the legislative and the judiciary. Executive power rests in the Governor of Hidalgo, who is directly elected by the citizens, using a secret ballot, to a 6-year term with no possibility of reelection. Legislative power rests in the Congress of Hidalgo which is a unicameral legislature. Judicial power is invested in the Superior Court of Justice of Hidalgo. The last local elections in Hidalgo were held in 2005, and the current governor is Miguel Ángel Osorio Chong, whose term expires in 2011.

Territorial division

The State of Hidalgo is divided into 84 municipalities, each headed by a municipal president (mayor). Most municipalities are named after the city that serves as municipal seat, for example the municipal seat of the Municipality of Pachuca is the City of Pachuca.

Major communities

• Huejutla de Reyes
• Ixmiquilpan
• Pachuca
• Tula de Allende
• Ciudad Sahagun
• Tepeji de Ocampo
• Tizayuca
• Tulancingo
• Progreso de Álvaro Obregón

References

External links

• (Spanish) Towns, cities, and postal codes in Hidalgo
• (Spanish) Hidalgo State Government
• (Spanish) Sangre para el Sol: las pinturas murales del siglo XVI en la parroquia de Ixmiquilpan, Hidalgo -- Blood for the Sun: XVI century mural paintings in the parish of Ixmiquilpan, Hidalgo
• (Spanish) Los otomíes, la educación y los derechos lingüísticos -- Otomies (indigenous group of Hidalgo), education and linguist rights
• (Spanish) Manuscritos otomíes del Virreinato -- Otomi manuscripts in the Viceroyalty
• (Spanish) Lengua, cultura e historia de los otomíes -- Language, culture, and history of the Otomi
• (Spanish) Publicaciones varias sobre la historia mexicana, incluyendo los otomies en Hidalgo y otras areas del bajio -- Bibliography of mexican history studies, including on the Otomi in Hidalgo and central Mexico
• Codices otomi -- Otomi codexes in French, English & Spanish

Political divisions of Mexico States of Mexico: Aguascalientes · Baja California · Baja California Sur · Campeche · Chiapas · Chihuahua · Coahuila · Colima · Durango · Guanajuato · Guerrero · Hidalgo · Jalisco · México · Michoacán · Morelos · Nayarit · Nuevo León · Oaxaca · Puebla · Querétaro · Quintana Roo · San Luis Potosí · Sinaloa · Sonora · Tabasco · Tamaulipas · Tlaxcala · Veracruz · Yucatán · Zacatecas Federal District

Coordinates: 20°28′42″N 98°51′49″W / 20.47833°N 98.86361°W / 20.47833; -98.86361