Hidalgo (state)

Hidalgo (Spanish pronunciation: [iˈðalɣo]), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Hidalgo (Spanish: Estado Libre y Soberano de Hidalgo), is one of the 32 states which constitute the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 84 municipalities and its capital city is Pachuca de Soto.

In 1869, Benito Juárez created the State of Hidalgo. He appointed as capital of the state the city of Pachuca to which was added the name “de Soto” in recognition of Manuel Fernando Soto, who is considered the most important driving force in creating the state.[9] The state was named after Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, the initiator of the Mexican War of Independence.

Located in Eastern Mexico,[10] Hidalgo is bordered by San Luis Potosí and Veracruz on the north, Puebla on the east, Tlaxcala and State of Mexico on the south and Querétaro on the west.[11]

The state has a number of relatively intact native cultures such as the Otomi. There are also three notable immigrant cultures, those of the descendants of Cornish miners from Cornwall (located in South West England) who arrived in the 19th century,[12] a few self-proclaimed Italian descendants, and a small Jewish enclave which claims to be descended from Sephardi Jews which came to New Spain in the 16th century.[13][14]

The state contains a number of ecotourism, cultural and archeological attractions including the Huasteca area, the ruins of Tula, natural hot water springs, old haciendas and mountain ranges.[15][16][17][18]

Hidalgo is known for its mountainous terrain but part of the state is on a coastal plain. With a population of 2.858 million and an area of roughly 20,813 square km, Hidalgo is one of Mexico’s smaller states.