Zapopan

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Zapopan

Coat of Arms
Location
Location in the State of Jalisco
Administration
Country	Mexico
State	Jalisco
Region	Región Centro
Metropolitan Area	Guadalajara Metropolitan Area
Municipality • Neighborhoods	Zapopan 399
Mayor	Juan Sánchez Aldana
Political party	PAN
Geography
City Area	893.15 km²
Metro Area	500 km²
Elevation	2015 Mts
Coordinates :	20°43′N 103°24′W
Population
City Population (2005)	1,026,492 city; 1,155,790 (Rank 9)
Metro Population (2005)	4,095,853 (Rank 2)
City Density	1,035 /km²
Metro Density	8,200/km²
General Information
Founded	1541
Demonym	Zapopano(a)
Time Zone	CST (UTC-6)
• Summer	CDT (UTC-5)
Postal Code	45010 - 45239
Area Code	+52 (Mexico) / +33 (Jalisco)
Website - H. Ayuntamiento de Zapopan

Zapopan is the seat of the municipality of Zapopan (municipio) in the Mexican state of Jalisco, and is part of the Guadalajara Metropolitan Area. As of the 2005 census the population of the city was 1,026,492 inhabitants, that of its municipality 1,155,790. The municipality, which has an area of 893.15 km² (344.85 sq mi), lies adjacent to the northwest side of Guadalajara and includes such smaller outlying communities as Nuevo México and Tesistán. The city and the municipality both rank second in population in the state, behind only the city and municipality of Guadalajara itself.

The city is a commercial center for the region, with most city malls within its limits, and is popular among tourists (see below).

1 History
2 Religion
3 Culture and education
4 Economy and business
5 Tourism
6 Sister Cities
7 References
8 External links

The actual area of Zapopan was populated before the 12th century by ethnical groups associated with the Totonaku, Hñähñu, Zapotec and P'urhépecha cultures. Later, the area was covered by hordes coming from the North, mainly groups from Uto-Aztecan origin, speaking languages related to the Nahuatl stem. Some of these groups were identified as Cazcans, Cocans and Tecuexes. Actually, the name "Zapopan" has Nahuatl origin, and it means "On the field of tzapotli" (from tzapotl, Diospyros digyna, a typical fruit from central and southern Mexico).

Between 1526 and 1540 the territory fall under control of the Spanish colonizers, being helped by Native peoples from Tlaxcala. In 1530 it passed officially to the New Galicia (Nueva Galicia) administration. Nevertheless, the human settlements almost disappeared to this date. The Spanish refoundation of the place took place on December 8, 1541. In 1824, Zapopan was converted into one of the 26 departments making the former division of the Jalisco state.

During the Mexican-American War (1846-1848) many people from Zapopan defended the Mexican flag in the battles around Monterrey, Saltillo, San Luis Potosí, Churubusco and Chapultepec. Zapopans also collaborated defending Jalisco against conservative powers and French army during the Maximilian empire (1863-1867). Later, the place saw minor military operations during the Mexican Revolution (1910-1917), but had a notorious participation during the Cristero War (1926-1928).

It has been considered an important place for the history of Mexican modern political parties, specially for the Catholic-wright winged PAN (Partido Acción Nacional).

As the most of the metropolitan area of Guadalajara, Zapopan is featured by a strong tradition in Roman Catholic practices. Several catholic churches were built during the Spanish occupancy, from the 16th to the begginig of the 19th century. Zapopan's basilica, Nuestra Señora de Zapopan Basilica (Basilica of Our Lady of Zapopan) is one of the most visited sanctuaries in Western Mexico, and it preserves a wooden Virgin that is considered a valuable relic of medieval origin, which came from Spain to New Galicia in the 16th century.

Some people born in Zapopan had also relevance in history of Roman Catholicism in Mexico. Among them we find Pascual Díaz y Barreto (1876-1936), archbishop of México; María Guadalupe García Zavala (1878-1963), nun; Jenaro Sánchez Delgadillo (1886-1927), priest; and Eva Briseño (1860-1941) and Soledad Orozco García de Ávila Camacho (1904-1996), women recognized by their Catholic, humanistic labour.

Some religious minorities also have social and/or economical significance. There is a local Jewish population, Jehovah's Witnesses, Evangelists and other groups which, compose less than the 5% of the religious preferences in the city. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints dedicated the Guadalajara México Temple here in 1983, and it serves 60,000 Latter-day Saints in Guadalajara, the state of Jalisco, and other parts of Western Mexico.

Zapopan is the seat of the Jalisco College (Colegio de Jalisco), an academic institution with official subsidy that develops a main role in historic and humanistic research in Jalisco state.

The city also holds campi of the Universidad de Guadalajara (U de G), the TEC (Tecnológico de Monterrey), and the Universidad Panamericana (UP), as well as the main facilities of the Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara (UAG) and the Universidad del Valle de Atemajac (UNIVA), these last three very orientated to Christian profiled education.

Among the people born in Zapopan, with notorious work in the artistic and intellectual fields, we find Cruz de la Mora Ramírez, sculptor; and Gabriel Pareyon, composer. The famous film director Felipe Cazals (1937) was born in Guethary (France), but his birth was registred in Zapopan, where he grew up.

The first industries in Zapopan were located in the Atemajac and La Experiencia eastern districts, where French businessmen built fiber and textile factories around 1885. During the first half of the 20th century, the area won industrial and commercial leadership thanks to the work of entrepreneurs like Pedro Velarde González (1892-1993), that proposed economic development within a humanistic frame.

Nowadays Zapopan holds important local industries like Empresas Tajín, which produces the popular Tajín fruit seasoning. Flextronics Corporation also has a large industrial park located in Zapopan. The municipality is famous for corn production, but it's quickly becoming home to a large number of housing developments.

Attractions in the surroundings include ecological areas like the Primavera oak forest and spas, the Santiago River canyon located in the limits with Huentitán municipality, and the tequila maguey plantations distributed to the western outskirts of the urban area. In addition to tourists, many pilgrims visit Zapopan's Basilica. [1], [2]

The eastern half of the city is filled with large office buildings and some of the most important shopping malls in the state, including Plaza del Sol, Plaza Milenium and Centro Magno. Next to Plaza del Sol is the tenth largest communications antenna and Latin America's tallest structure: the Torrena, a shopping mall and cultural center expected to open on 2007.

Other landmarks are:

Minerva (1959), a monument to Roman goddess Minerva (Greek Athena), protecting the Arcos de Guadalajara, the entrance to the neighboring city.
Arcos del Milenio (2001- ), an unfinished monument commemorating the millennium.
Expo Guadalajara (1997), the largest convention center in Latin America, owned by the Universidad de Guadalajara, home to the yearly Feria Internacional del Libro (FIL), the world's biggest book fair, second only to the Frankfurt Book Fair.
The Torrena (2007- ), a 336 meter tall tower currently under construction near the Expo Guadalajara conventions center.